A Wish on Freedom
by The Blue Engine
Summary: All Victoria Freeman has ever wanted is to experience life outside of Miltank Meadows, the farm where she has been trapped for years. When she gets an opportunity to live out her dreams, Victoria and her friends escape, and must fight to retain their freedom as the cruel Minder chases them to Hoenn, prepared to keep the Meadows secret safe one way or another.
1. Part One: New Adventure Dawning

Hey. This new series has been on Bulbagarden for a while now, but I am now going to be posting it here as well in order to get a wider range of readers. I hope you enjoy the story itself, and don't bash the slavery themes it is based around

**Part 1: New Adventure Dawning **

Olivine City was the busiest part of Johto. It was an industrial city, built heavily on the new discovery of steel-type Pokemon, which was helping to construct a lot of the city, and all parts of the region. But Olivine was mainly bustling as it was a busy commercial and industrial port: the main railways from Goldenrod ended here, with lots of produce, minerals and materials being brought here to be shipped to other regions. And the wealthy people of the land came here to sail to other regions, or trainers with decent cash would go and try Kanto, Hoenn or Sinnoh out for size. Olivine residents were mainly for the men and their families who worked there, and they all got on well enough.  
>And most of their food came from Miltank Meadows.<br>Miltank Meadows was a farm, several kilometres up the hill from Olivine. Trainers passed it on their way from Ecruteak to Olivine, and there was a small train platform outside the main gates, where the morning and afternoon freight trains would collect their goods and take it to Olivine. The farm was surrounded by two metre high, dark green hedges. The only break was a wrought iron gate, which lead straight into a closed off courtyard. Miltank Meadows produced milk from Miltank, wool from Mareep and Flaafy, eggs from Torchic and Combusken, and meat from Miltank, Tauros, Combusken and Grumpig. They made a wealthy living, with a huge farmhouse in the middle of the fields, and the farmer, Edmund Parrish, his wife Grace, their sons Victor and Marvin, and their daughter Judith lived a happy lifestyle.  
>Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for their workers...<p> 


	2. Chapter One: Dawn

**Chapter One: Dawn**

_May 1__st__ 1910_

As the sun rose up into the sky, its bright orange light began to shine through windows all across the regions, waking up the residents.  
>At the bottom of the Miltank Meadows paddock, there was a tall, wooden structure. It was built into the ground, so that the roof barely stretched over the top of the hedge. Too most people passing, it looked like the top of some sort of storage facility, and few people questioned it's existence. No one knew the true horror that that building held.<p>

Several times a year, Edmund Parrish would go to an orphanage in Ecruteak City. There, he would pick a poor, innocent little orphan out, with grand promises to give them a healthy lifestyle working on his farm. The nuns that ran the orphanage loved this idea, and were always willing to help with the paperwork, and bide Edmund and his new orphan goodbye.

But once they got back behind the hedges, Edmund and his sons began breaking the orphan in. They frightened the orphan, saying they would track them down and kill them if they ever ran away. Then, they would show them around the different fields, such as the fields where the vegetables grew, and the stables and barnhouse where the Miltank were milked by the female slaves. Then, there were taken down to the tower. The slaves all called it 'Lucifer's Cage', as it was probably the most hellish place on the property. Boys slept in the big lower floor, though it was covered with mud and flith, while the girls slept in the cramped upper floor, with barely any room to move. The slaves there were of all different races, as Edmund like the nuns to think he was 'multicultural'. Edmund told the orphans that they would get a decent living on the farm, and that they should be happy they aren't turned into meat and sold alongside dead Tauros. Then, the new slave would be left alone in the tower to cry over their horrific new life.

This was the life Victoria Freeman lived.

Five years ago, her parents had been walking through Ecruteak City, when a white gang jumped them. Her father swiftly sent his Machamp out and defeated the gang, but they angrily retaliated and attacked her parents with knifes. The police found their bodies, throats slit, on the side of the road the next morning. Ten year old Victoria was left alone and distraught, and was sent to the Ecruteak Orphanage. She was stuck there for three years, before Edmund came one September morning, and choose her and another black girl, Gwenda, to come and work on his farm.

Victoria had been terrified, as Victor and Marvin towered over here, and the Tauros, Grumpig and Edmund's Blaziken came across as terrifying. Thankfully, she was partnered with Gwenda, who she knew a little from the orphanage, and they mainly had to tend to Miltank and collecting eggs and wool. They also had to help load stuff onto the freight trains. They were always changed into nice clothing when they did this, so the driver and firemen wouldn't suspect a thing. Most nights, Victoria cried herself to sleep, as she couldn't bear the horror of this place.

Now, two years later, Victoria was fifteen years old, and she was lying on the floor, staring up at the wooden ceiling, as orange dawn sunlight shone through the window. Victoria had long gone past the days when she cried to sleep, but now she struggled to sleep against how uncomfortable the floor was. She slept with only a thin blanket, and used her clothes as a pillow. Most nights, the older girls would stay up late, sharing dreams and swapping tales from before they came here, waiting until they became tired. The white girls had had much simpler lives, with their parents being killed in train crashes or from illness. Both the black and Hispanic girls had had worse upbringings, having to deal with discrimination, which lead to them having less enjoyable lives. Gwenda was the only one who never shared her story, choosing her time to read from a tattered novel she had had for years.  
>As Victoria yawned and stood up, she could see that several other girls were waking up as well, and getting ready for the days work. Two girls kneeled around the small jug with water in it, taking sips to quench their thirst. Victoria smiled at them, and looked down at a hand mirror that had belonged to her mother. Victoria was very beautiful, with dark brown eyes, long black hair, and a warm smile. She was thin due to a lack of food, and it showed in her shallow cheeks and thin stomach. But, as one of the girls always joked, at least they weren't overweight. Victoria remembered this and smiled, but it only highlighted the sadness in her eyes.<br>"Victoria, this is yours right?" Victoria stopped looking at herself sadly and looked around. Gwenda, who slept beside her, had woken up, and was slowly standing up whilst yawning. She was shorter and bit pudgier than Victoria, but had a much bigger smile and nice short hair. She was holding up a yellowed newspaper article, and passed it over to her friend.

"My article, thanks!" Victoria smiled, and took it back. The title read HOENN STAR FESTIVAL A GREAT SUCCESS. When they had been at the orphanage, Victoria saw in the newspaper about a special festival in Lilycove City in Hoenn. They had a big celebration to celebrate Jirachi, a legendary Pokemon that could grant wishes. Victoria had never seen a picture of it, but the Pokemon sounded just magical, and Victoria always had dreams about trying to find it, but never quite getting there.

"Wake up ladies, wake up!"

The cold voice that echoed up the staircase caused all the sleeping girls to open their eyes. They all knew that voice, and the familiar sound of his cane hitting the stairs. All of the girls leapt up, and stood together in a line.

The Minder was a malicious, nasty old man. He had been in charge of the slaves for years, watching over them so that Edmund wouldn't have too as much. But, late last year, one male slave got so angry at the Minder that he set the Tauros free. They trampled him, and severely broke his leg. It had healed over the time, but now the Minder walked with a cane in one hand, and his one metre long, black leather whip in the other.

He finished walking up the stairs, and stared at the girls. His hair was silver, and his face was sun damaged and had lots of scars on it, make him looking creepy and nasty. He wore a smart white shirt and long black pants, which wasn't really appropriate clothing for being out in the sun all day, but the Minder enjoyed looking tidy.  
>"This room is a mess!" He snarled. "I want it cleaned up tonight after work, or no dinner!" He was always finding ways to try and take away their meals. "There is some bread downstairs for breakfast, but you need to get dressed first. Now hurry up!" He barked, and began limping and clunking away.<br>"I hate him so much." Gwenda muttered.  
>"I hate this place more." Victoria replied grouchily, as she grabbed her makeshift pillow and unravelled it, to reveal a filthy pink dress with matching hat, and a white apron. Everyone checked the Minder was out of sight before taking off their nightdresses and pulling their work ones on.<br>"Let's just get out and hope this day goes well… enough." Victoria said with false happiness. Gwenda smiled, and the two linked arms as they headed downstairs.


	3. Chapter Two: Work

**Chapter 2: Work**

Things at Miltank Meadows always had a certain routine.

Once the workers were woken up at the crack of dawn, they had half an hour to get dressed, eat, and assemble outside the silo. They would then stand there for up to an hour while Edmund got ready. If anyone tried to sit down or complained about standing, the Minder will pull his whip out, and teach that person, and the others, a good lesson.

Once Edmund finally arrived, riding on his Rapidash, he would make some nasty remark such as "poor little orphans" or "idiotic slaves" just to try and annoy them, and would then set them to work.

The jobs were separated by gender, as Edmund didn't think girls would be able to handle some of the other jobs. The male workers were sent to tend the fields, ploughing it or controlling the Tauros that did that, and helped slaughter animals, shear the Mareep, and did maintenance work. The girls had to milk the Miltank, collect eggs from the Torchic, and sometimes helped with gardening or painting, if they had been well behaved.  
>Today, Victoria and Gwenda were working together, milking one of the youngest Miltank, one called Millicent.<p>

"MIIIIIILLLL!" She mooed, and bounced around happily as the two girls approached. Victoria was carrying a bucket, while Gwenda had a stool for them to sit on.

"Hello girl, how are you?" Victoria asked, and stroked Millicent's head with her free hand.

"Miltank Mil!" Millicent smiled, and nuzzled against Victoria's hand.

"She is so cute!" Gwenda squealed, and gave Millicent a big hug. Than, she placed the stool down, which Victoria flopped down on, and then worked on tying a rope to a leather collar around Millicent's neck. Some of the younger cows got a bit carried away during milking, so they had a collar and were kept in control. Millicent saw the rope and huffed, and got down onto all fours.

"That's a good girl." Victoria said, and she made sure her apron was covering her work dress, and put the bucket under Millicent and bent down. Gwenda wandered over to a half eaten hay bale, and she flopped down onto it.

"Yawn!" She growled, and slouched over the golden coloured bale. "This job is so boring! I wish we could help with the gardening."

"The Minder said we can't for another week." Victoria answered, as she tugged at Millicent's utter.

"Stupid Betty, why couldn't she insult people a bit quieter?" Gwenda huffed. Victoria looked over at her and laughed.

"Or, you know, just not insult anyone?" Victoria suggested.

"We both know that's impossible." Gwenda smirked, and the two friends laughed.

"Mil!" Millicent huffed, and glared at Victoria.

"Sorry girl, do you want to be in on the conversation as well?" Victoria asked with a smile, and went back to milking here. Gwenda kept laughing for a minute, but one of the other Miltank mooed in protest, so Gwenda just stared out of the open doors. Victor and Marvin were riding around the paddocks on Ponyta, ordering the slaves to work faster. Several boos were towing big carts, fill of hay bales, across the fields, and were struggling to get over one bit. But Victor and Marvin just yelled insults and used whips to hit their backs.

"Disgusting." Gwenda sighed, and her eyes narrowed in her anger. Victor and Marvin resembled Tauros themselves: huge bodies, tanned from being in the sun a lot, and bushy, brown, curly hair. But they both looked like they had been punched in the nose, and had swollen, sunburnt faces.

"Yes, those boys are very vile." Victoria snarled, and gave a too hard of a tug on Millicent's utter.

"MIIIIILLL!" She wailed, and angrily kicked at the back wall.

"Sorry girl, sorry, I didn't mean too!" Victoria apologised, and quickly gave Millicent a hug. Millicent still looked cross, so Gwenda came over joined in. After a few minutes, Millicent finally smiled, and got up and hugged the two back.

"How beautiful." A voice said, and the three turned around.

Andrew Kingston was one of the eldest male workers on the farm. Age sixteen, he had longish brown hair, a decent build from all of his work, handsome blue eyes, a semi tan and scars from whipping. Victoria and Gwenda admired him, for both his good looks and his ability to stay calm under the pressure of the farm. He had been here for eight years, so knew the place well, and was well past the Minder and Edmund's insults.

"Oh, hello Andrew, what are you doing here?" Victoria asked, and she felt herself blushing.

"Only girls are allowed in here, unless you are fixing something." Gwenda added.

"I am aware of that." Andrew said with a smirk, making Victoria giggle slightly. "The Minder wants you two to help load up the train, some of the other girls are busy dealing with some loose Torchic.

"MILLLTAANK!" Millicent huffed, angry about them leaving mid-milk. Andrew could sense the source of her grievance, and walked towards her. Victoria and Gwenda gasped as Andrew began petting her, and even gave her a quick hug.

"Don't worry, they'll be back soon." Andrew whispered, and Millicent smiled.

"That is brilliant, even we can't do that!" Victoria gasped, as Millicent wandered over some hay to sit on while she waited.

"I suppose I know Pokemon a bit better." Andrew teased, and began walking off. "You two coming?"

"Of course!" Gwenda replied, and linked arms with Victoria. "I bet they can see you blushing down in Olivine." She added quietly.

"Don't be rude!" Victoria whispered, but the two began laughing hysterically as they followed Andrew to the platform.


	4. Chapter Three: Steam

**Chapter 3: Steam**

One of the more relaxing, pleasant parts of the day was loading up the daily freight trains to Olivine.

Twice day, usually around nine in the morning and four in the afternoon, a steam engine, completing its run from Blackthorn to Olivine via Goldenrod would stop at the small grey platform just outside. Two empty trucks would be at the front of the train, waiting to be loaded with mainly milk vats from the farm, but also with the eggs, Pokemon carcases and wool that needed to be shipped off as well.

The platform led straight into an enclosed room where all of the supplies were waiting to be loaded on. The slaves would come out, dressed in neater clothing as not to raise suspicions, and they would help Victor and Marvin load everything quickly into the two trucks.

Today, things were no different. Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew rushed into a line behind about a dozen other slaves, who were quickly putting aprons and clean shirts over their clothes.

"One day we should just run out there and go 'I'M A SLAVE'" Gwenda mumbled and Victoria struggled to hide her snigger.

"No talking, hurry up and look decent!" The deep yet slow voice of Victor Parrish boomed at them. Victor and Marvin were almost identical: greasy black hair, large pumpkin shaped heads, and fatty arms and stomachs that they disguised by tucking their shirts in. Victor was older, but that just meant he was fatter and a few inches taller than his brother, as they were as hideous, clueless and foul-smelling as the other.

"Let's just hurry up with this, I do actually want to eat tonight." Victoria said with a sigh as Victor moved away with thundering footsteps, and Gwenda nodded. The two girls tied each others aprons, and then they followed everyone else onto the platform.

The Blackthorn Freight Express was always a glorious sight to see. About fifty trucks and wagons, all of many different shapes, sizes and colours, connected in a long line that stretched all the way down Route 38. At the front of the train was one of the many steam engines that pulled, a glorious black metal beast, puffing white smoke and steam into the sky, and some of the slaves paused for a second to admire its beauty. Victoria's parents always use to take her on the train, and had to fight back the memories, not wishing to break down in tears right now.

"Come on Victoria, you don't want to get punished." Andrew's voice whispered softly into her air, and Victoria instantly perked up. The sixteen year old smiled warmly at her as she looked up, and then led her over to where Gwenda was struggling with a milk vat.

"Let's get a move on!" Victoria said, and she grabbed one of the handles, and the two friends used all their strength to carry the heavy milk vat towards the open trucks. The train's fireman opened up the doors for them, and Victoria and Gwenda waddled over a wooden plank to put the vat up against the wall.

"Let's go find some wool, shall we?" Gwenda puffed, making Victoria laugh. Victor and Marvin chatted to the crew, leaving the slaves to do all the work. Most of the boys that had showed up carried a milk vat each, so Victoria and Gwenda retired to taken crates of eggs and bags of wool, which were much less strenuous. Within five minutes all of those things were stacked up in a truck, and Victoria and Gwenda stayed back with a few girls while the boys finished dealing with the milk vats.

"Hurry up you lot, the train needs to go!" Marvin boomed, shattering the silence the slaves had been working under.

"You could always help." Victoria muttered, and several of the girls giggled. One of the boys, Arthur, was red in the face and panting, yet he was dragging two of the vats across the platform, the scraping heard even over the loud steam engine.

"Stop doing that, you damage the vats!" Victor shouted. Victoria and Gwenda looked forward nervously as Arthur ignored his superior, continuing to scrape the vats along the ground.

"Stop it you moron!" Marvin snapped. Arthur stopped walking at this, and he looked angrily at the two men staring down at him. He looked over at the train crew watching them, and then over at his fellow slaves, all of whom didn't know what to do, and then he smiled.

"YOU'RE THE MORON YOU BASTARD!" Arthur yelled. Angrily he thrust one of the vats forwards knocking Marvin over into Victor. While the brothers were distracted, he opened the lid of the vat and then pushed the metal canister over. There was a metallic ring as the vat hit the ground, and then the white liquid poured out over the platform. The slaves all gasped, and they stared in shock as Arthur simply stood there, staring angrily at the brothers in defiance, who were staring back equally as stunned as the slaves.

"You can go along now." Victor growled to the crew. The driver went to say something, but Marvin angrily closed the doors, signalling for them to leave. A cloud of steam was sent over them all, and everyone watched as the train slowly made its way out of the station. Victor and Marvin waited for the train to be far enough out of distance, and the tension built and built, and some of the younger girls began shaking. Once the brakevan had passed the end of the platform, Victor grabbed the remaining mik vat and drove it into Arthur's stomach.

"YOU PIECE OF SHIT, YOU NEARLY RUINED EVERYTHING!" Victor roared as Arthur collapsed to the floor. Marvin kicked Arthur between the legs and several girls shrieked. The brothers picked up the weeping boy and dragged him along the ground. Some of the male slaves, including Andrew, looked ready to defy them, but the brothers snarled and their courage was broken, and they could only step aside.

"BACK TO WORK!" Marvin yelled, leaving Victor to finish up with Arthur. The slaves all rushed through the door, some of them beginning to weep, and they rushed back to what they were doing.

"What are they going to do to him?" Gwenda whimpered as they reached the stables. Victoria watched as Victor pulled Arthur by his hair, trying to ignore the screams of pain, and they went inside the house.

"I don't know, but I don't think it'll be pretty." She replied. Gwenda sobbed, and the two friends hugged each other, not sure what to say or do, just to be there for one another.


	5. Chapter Four: Punishment

**Chapter 4: Punishment**

_Two days later…._

Another day had begun at Miltank Meadows. As usual, they had woken up early, had a brief breakfast, and then been sent out to their work. The weather was the same it had been two days ago, the goods train arrived at the same time, and it seemed that nothing particularly different was happening.

But everyone was extremely tense.

Arthur hadn't been seen since he had dropped the milk vats. He had been taken to "The Shack", a stone shack in the far corners of the farm, far away from the hedges where the public could see or hear what was going on. Inside, slaves were beaten for misbehaving, abusive attitudes, defying orders or trying to escape. Most of the slaves here hadn't been inside it, as many slaves died from the pain. They knew that it involved whipping, and sometimes other slaves would have to bring firewood to the door, and would be greeted by great heat as they passed the wood over. No one wanted to have to take the wood over, as it made them feel extremely guilty and was almost like a form of torture.

So Victoria was not pleased to be given the job today.

She had been pulled away from collecting eggs to take two baskets of logs towards the shack. It involved walking around the edge of the paddocks, away from valuable produce and pens.

"Wish me luck." Victoria had said to Gwenda, before sighing, picking up the bucket and beginning to long journey towards The Shack. The ground was harder around the edges of the field, as Edmund never disturbed that area, building his pens and planting his crops far away from the fence's edge. Several Tauros mooed at Victoria as she moved by, struggling with the wood. It was weighing down on her back, threatening to snap her in half.

"This…. is really…. painful…." Victoria panted, nearly collapsing over as she got closer and closer. No one worked this close to The Shack, and Victoria found it getting very lonely as she wandered towards the daunting shed. Her feet crunched over fallen twigs and dead leaves, a gentle yet silent breeze brushing over her. The Shack was getting nearer and nearer, and Victoria found herself walking slower and slower. She didn't want to go this wicked place, this place where her friends had been tortured and killed. She felt sick about being so near here, with no idea what was happening to Arthur inside. Should we back away, should she just leave the wood and give some other reason for her early depature? But just as these thoughts entered her mind, the wooden door into The Shack opened. The Minder was standing there, dressed in only a singlet and shorts, showing his aging arms and his horrifically trampled leg.

"There you are girl, hurry up!" He barked. His whip was in his hand, and Victoria decided to hurry to avoid getting hit by it.

"Very sorry sir, I-" Victoria began, trying to think of an excuse, but the Minder just growled and rolled his eyes.

"I don't care why you're late, just get in there!"

"Yes sir… wait, I have to go in there?" Victoria gasped, freezing a metre from the shack. She could hear voices inside and the intense heat was already making her feel hot. The Minder smiled and reached out, grabbing her dress with a sweaty hand. Victoria avoided his eyes, instead staring at the purple and black mark on his leg.

"We are a bit busy dealing with Artie here, so we need you to stoke the fire." The Minder hissed, and he began pushing Victoria forwards. She wanted to protest, proclaim her innocence, but knew it would only meet deaf eyes. She tried to think about other things, like the eggs she would have to collect later or the hope they got some fresh bread tonight. But as soon as she entered The Shack, Victoria couldn't distract herself anymore.

The Shack was a circular structure, completely stone in the inside as well as the outside. There were no windows, no lamps, no seats, nothing like that. There was a metal bath against one side, full of boiling water as steam was rising up. A large fire was burning inside a stone section, sparks flying everywhere as it began to die down.

But the thing that caught Victoria's attention the most as she was shoved in was the scene opposite her.

Edmund Parrish was standing there, almost identical to his son except bigger, fitter and a much more brutal face. He was wearing a singlet and shorts as well, showing his hairy chest and legs off. He also had a whip in his hand, and had stopped what he was doing to see Victoria enter. There was no mistaking who they were whipping: Arthur had been stripped and was hanging from shackles in the roof. He was covered in sweat and blood, his chest and back having been horrifically ripped. There was a gag in his mouth, but Arthur's eyes showed all the emotion: sadness, horror, pleading at Victoria. She was so shocked by the horrific look in his eyes that she forgot why she was there, where they were, didn't focus on any other part of him, she just stared into his eyes, feeling her own heart breaking in two.

"Hurry up, we need to get back to work!" Edmund boomed. Victoria nodded, a little whimper escaping, and she raced over with the buckets of logs. She moved as swiftly as possible, sweat already mingling with the tears on her face. The room was so unbearably hot that Victoria was surprised that anyone could breathe inside this place.

"Go faster!" Edmund roared, and he angrily lashed out with his whip. Victoria gasped as it snapped against her back. She could feel the tear form in her dress, and she felt a strong, searing pain. She tipped the last of the logs in, which instantly caught alight and blasted her with more heat. Victoria grabbed the baskets and turned to leave, watching as Edmund began to undo the shackles. Victoria stared at Arthur, who was looking, if possible, even more terrified. A hand suddenly clasped around Victoria's throat, and she turned to look into the Minder's evil eyes.

"Make sure all your little friends hear about this, maybe than they'll learn to respect their authorities!" He hissed, and he turned her head so she faced the bath. Edmund dragged Arthur across the floor, who was too weak to respond, all hope gone from inside. Victoria gasped as Arthur was picked up and placed in the hot water. That was when he began squirming, desperate to get out of the boiling water. Edmund grasped his head and held it under, and Victoria couldn't take anymore.

"Get back to work!" The Minder laughed and shoved her out the door, closing it with a loud bang. Victoria fell against the hard earth, landing on her already injured back. Victoria didn't care about this, she just began to sob. Someone she had known was being tortured only a few feet away, and Victoria could do nothing about it. They were forced to obey to these ruthless dictators that threatened them and their wellbeing.

Victoria could remember being so excited about being adopted, happy that she and Gwenda were being taken to a better home. Ever since she had arrived, her happiness, her hope, all the good thoughts and dreams she had once had were crushed. They were all turned into depressed shells of their past lives, and if they so much as said a word out of line they would find themselves kicked, hit, beaten, tortured or killed.

"I hate this place." Victoria whimpered, and she laid there for a few more minutes, letting her tears come out. Once she was finally able to control herself, Victoria stood up and ran as fast as possible away from The Shack, not caring where she went or what she stood on, just desperate to get away from it all.


	6. Chapter Five: News

**Chapter 5: ****News**

It didn't take long for Victoria to run back towards the stables, sprinting as fast as her legs could carry her. The buckets banged against each other as she ran between the different crop sections and past the pen that kept the Grumpig in. They all oinked at her as she went by, but Victoria didn't care. Tears were streaming down her face, the image of Arthur's bleeding body still stuck in her mind. It was nightmarish image that Victoria just couldn't shake off, no matter how hard she tried. She thought of Gwenda, Andrew, the star festival, her parents, even of Victor and Marvin to try and distract herself, but nothing worked: Arthur's horrified, hopeless eyes seemed to be constantly staring back at her.

"Oi, watch it!" A male voice snapped. Victoria hadn't realised she had nearly run into another slave and a Tauros. The large brown Pokemon let out a loud moo in discomfort, and the slave gave Victoria a glaring look.

"Sorry, sorry!" Victoria whimpered, and she ran back around Tauros and sprinted off towards the house and stables. People stared at her as she ran past, most of them whispering amongst themselves and staring towards The Shack. Victoria didn't want to answer any of their questions, she just wanted to forget that this event had ever happened. She raced past Grace Parrish's flower garden and went straight towards the stables. Several girls were there, but Victoria moved straight towards Gwenda. As always, she was milking Millicent, who was chewing some hay.

"Hey, how was it?" Gwenda asked as she heard her footsteps. She froze as she saw the petrified look on her friends face and the tears streaming down her cheeks. "Oh my god, was it that bad?" Victoria nodded and then she collapsed forwards onto her friend, letting the tears come out and wrapped her arms around her friend for support. Gwenda hugged Victoria tightly and led her towards the stool and sat her down.

"Mil?" Millicent asked and stood up, giving Victoria a heavy pat on the back that nearly knocked her off the stool. Gwenda went to scold the Miltank, but Victoria managed to stop sobbing and sat up straight, wiping the tears away.

"I don't really want to go into too much detail, but that place is just awful!" She whimpered. "I can see why so many of us end up dying there, it is just so cruel!"

"What do you mean?" Gwenda asked. She wanted to respect her friends wishes, but she was also anxious to know what the infamous Shack really contained. Victoria briefly explained what she had seen: the roaring fire, the whips, the bath of boiling water. She explained how Arthur had been stripped and was being whipped, but she left out the cold dead look in his eyes, not wanting Gwenda to have to picture that horrific image. By the time Victoria had finished explaining, several of the other girls had come around to listen to her, and many of them, including Gwenda, were beginning to cry.

"That sounds terrible!" One of the white girls gasped.

"I can't believe they forced you to watch that!" A fellow milker added, and many of the girls nodded as they dabbed their eyes. Victoria could only nod as she let out a tiny sob. Millicent and several other Miltank even looked rather distressed about the whole situation, and they had a hushed conversation amongst themselves in their loud moos. Suddenly, there was the sound of a door banging, and everyone gasped as a little girl appeared behind them.

"Back to work or I'll tell Father! Back to work or I'll tell Minder!" The shrill little child yelled, and the slaves quickly rushed back to their stations. The little girl was Judith Parrish, the eight year old daughter of Edmund. She had long black hair done in a bun and always wore brightly coloured dresses (today's was green) in order to stand out from the slaves. She was sly and mischievous, always sneaking around in order to catch the slaves off guard and then have them whipped or worse.

"That's right, do your filthy work!" Judith sneered and she danced around, poking her tongue out and laughing shrilly, knowing they could do nothing in order to stop her.

"Little vermin, she's the real cow here!" Gwenda hissed. Victoria stifled a laugh as she continued to milk Millicent, who had grown bored and gone back to eating hay. Judith was about to start another one of her jeering songs when the door to the stables from the house banged open. A woman appeared in the doorway, looking like an older, nicer version of Judith: long black hair, a long brown and black dress with a matching hat.

"Judith, I told you not to come out here!" Grace Parrish snapped. She was much nicer than the rest of her family, occasionally allowing the slaves to help with gardening or jobs around the house.

"But Mother, I want to throw things at them!" Judith laughed, and she grabbed some stones from the ground. Grace sighed and rushed forwards, grabbing her daughters hand and pulling her back towards the door. The slaves all knew Grace didn't like having the slaves treated like this, and was always trying to tell her husband to set them free, care for them better or to stop harming them.

"Go to your room and don't come out for half an hour!" Grace shouted and slammed the door in her daughter's face. The slaves had paused for a moment, but they quickly went back to milking furiously. Grace headed in the direction of Victoria and Gwenda, and the two began working hard.

"Taaaank!" Millicent mooed angrily as Victoria tugged her utters a bit too hard.

"Sorry girl!" Victoria apologised in a nervous tone, and she quickly wiped away tears as Grace appeared in their part of the stables.

"Come now Victoria, I think that bucket's full!" Gwenda boomed, avoiding eye contact with the wife of their owner. Grace simply laughed as Victoria and Gwenda swapped the buckets over, and the two girls nervously exchanged looks.

"I'm not going to punish you two, I'm not my husband!" Grace laughed, and the girls breathed out in relief. "I saw you heading towards The Shack and I felt terrible for you," She continued, and Victoria nodded gravely as fresh tears began to roll. "so when I was reading the paper, I noticed this article and remembered seeing a similar one when I visited the tower." Victoria and Gwenda exchanged curious looks, and they took the newspaper Grace had under her arm. The text was very fancy and hard to read, but their eyes caught the attention of a picture of the legendary Pokemon Jirachi. The caption read "PLANNING FOR 1910 HOENN STAR FESTIVAL BEGINS."

"That's like that article you have." Gwenda said, but Victoria ignored her: a sudden sense of happiness began to flow through her body. The Star Festival article had always made her feel happy, the general idea of a Pokemon that could grant wishes and cure her of her miserable life was the main topic of all her dreams.

"May I keep this please article please?" Victoria asked quickly and excitedly. Gwenda was surprised by her excited tone, but Grace smiled and nodded.

"Of course, I'll tell Edmund that I ripped it by accident." She replied sweetly, and Victoria passed the rest of the newspaper over. She waved goodbye to the girls and walked backwards the house to deal with her daughter.

"Why are you so excited about it, it's only a festival." Gwenda scoffed as she replaced her friend on milking duties. Millicent yawned and watched Victoria pace around excitedly.

"Jirachi is a legendary Pokemon, it's said to have the powers to grant wishes to people that desperately need them!" Victoria explained. "It is meant to appear somehow at this festival, and I'm going to go there and get my wish granted!" Gwenda nearly fell of her stool in shock, and she stared at Victoria with wide eyes and a dropped jaw. Millicent's eyes even bulged out of their sockets, bits of hay falling out of her mouth.

"Y-Y-You m-mean..." Gwenda stuttered, not sure what to say. Victoria smiled and bent down so only Gwenda would hear her.

"That's right, I'm going to runaway from here."


	7. Chapter Six: Planning

**Chapter 6: Planning**

"Get over here right now!"

Heads turned curiously as Gwenda dragged Victoria out of the stables, tutting and looking like her eyes were about to drop out of her head. Millicent remained slouched on a pile of hay, her buckets of milk being left behind. Victoria smirked and tried not to laugh at how ridiculous Gwenda was being, and finally couldn't hold the hilarity of being dragged away back any longer: more heads turned as the two disappeared into the wash area, Victoria's laugh echoing everywhere.

"Will you stop laughing!" Gwenda scolded once they came to a stop. The wash area was just a secluded area of the stables, with two standpipes to provide water to the slaves, a variety of old troths and metal bathtubs that they cleaned in, and piles of manure from the Miltank they shared the area with.

"You have to admit, the idea of you acting mature is pretty funny!" Victoria cackled, covering her mouth with her hand to try and silence herself. Gwenda just stamped her foot angrily and huffed, and Victoria sniggered again.

"Victoria, I am being serious!" Gwenda snapped. "You can't just go around saying you will run away! Victor or Marvin could have overheard you, and I don't want to see you getting beaten up by them just because you want to go see some silly festival! No one's ever run away from here, what makes you think you can?" Victoria had begun to stop laughing, but her happiness had quickly diminished as Gwenda continued to speak, her broad smile turning into a thin lipped scowl.

"Some silly festival?" Victoria repeated, her eyes flaming. "Some silly festival!" Gwenda took a nervous step backwards, realising her bad choice of words. "I have been admiring this festival since I got to this wretched hell hole! This silly festival is the only thing asides from you that is keeping me sane as my friends disappear around us, as we watch people getting beaten close to death, as I struggle to sleep at night with an empty stomach and filthy clothing! If it wasn't for the idea of this silly festival, I probably would have let myself get kicked to death within the first month!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that!" Gwenda said quickly, looking extremely guilty. "I didn't realise how important this festival was to you."

"Damn right!" Victoria huffed, feeling the tears forming in her eyes. "My dream has been to go to this festival, and I am not going to die until I have gone to Lilycove City and encountered Jirachi! I want to have the opportunity to wish for a better life, not just for me but for all of us slaves! And that's why I will be able to successfully run away: I actually have a goal to strive for!" As Victoria finished talking, she had begun breaking down in tears, and Gwenda was tearing up as well. The two friends began weeping, collapsing into a tight hug. Gwenda continuously apologised through her tears, and Victoria had to keep saying 'It's fine, it's fine.'

"I understand why you want to run away," Gwenda said as they continued to embrace, "but how exactly do you plan on doing it? The fences are far too high, and the doors to the platform are locked at night. And The Minder sleeps in a hut outside for Lucifer's Cage!" Victoria sniffed and wiped away her tears, listening to what her friend was saying. It was going to be very difficult for them to escape, especially as they were usually tired, weak and in hunger pains by the end of the day.

"I'm not sure how we are going to escape from here, but I'm sure I'll think of something!" Victoria said determinedly, trying not to get set back. However, as she turned to Gwenda for her input, she saw her friend's eyeballs were nearly out of her head. Victoria was about to ask what was wrong when someone coughed behind her.

"Escape, from where?" Victoria turned around and her eyes nearly fell out as well. Andrew was standing behind them, his shirt being held in his hands. Victoria and Gwenda exchanged brief glances as Andrew walked forwards curiously, both of their eyes focused upon his buff chest. As Andrew had been here for so long, he had developed a very nice body in their arms, and the sun reflecting off his sweat somehow made his bronzed body all the more attractive.

"What do you want?" Victoria asked briskly, brushing aside what he said. Andrew held his shirt off, which was covered in more than the usual amount of mud.

"Those Grumpig are getting a bit irritable, and one of them blasted me into the mud with Psychic when I tried to move it into a different pen." Andrew explained, dunking his shirt into a bucket that could be used for cleaning. Gwenda looked at Victoria with her jaw dropped, mouthing 'Oh my god' and pointing at his flexing muscles, and Victoria had to stifle a snigger. However, something Andrew had just said was floating around in her mind, a rough plan quickly forming.

"So, are you two planning to run away or something?" Andrew asked with a half smile, though as he turned his head his eyes came across as serious. Victoria and Gwenda put on shocked expressions, and than burst out in false laughter.

"Us, run away!" Victoria said as Gwenda wiped away a false tear of laughter. "You misheard us: I was talking about Millicent, the Miltank we milk, running away sometimes when she gets upset. I was saying that one of these days she's just going to run off down the lines!" Andrew joined in on the laughter as he ringed his shirt out, though Victoria could tell he didn't believe her. She looked at Gwenda for support, but found her friend giving her a curious look at the very specific answer.

"Well, we better head back to the stables and make sure Millicent hasn't run off!" Victoria said quickly to cover things up. "We'll see you later Handsome – I mean Andrew…" The teenager didn't seem to hear, allowing Victoria to grab Gwenda and drag her quickly out of there. Gwenda had let her surprised face get replaced with a smirk, and Victoria decided to ignore the kissing sounds she was making.

"Oh really mature!" Victoria snapped as they stood in the corner before the stables. Victor and Marvin were telling some others off nearby, so they would have to get back to Millicent quickly. But Gwenda stopped laughing and grabbed Victoria's arm, staring at the Miltank intensely.

"Why were you so specific back there?" Gwenda asked. "Why did you keep talking about Millicent?" Victoria's eyes twinkled mysteriously, the embarrassment of her word slip being pushed behind them as the escape idea took center stage again.

"If you and I are going to escape, I'm not leaving Millicent behind," Victoria began explaining with an all-knowing smirk, "and if everything goes to plan, she is going to be the one doing all the breaking out." Gwenda looked horrified, but Victoria just winked at her and headed back towards their lazy young Miltank, who was unaware of what her milker had planned for her.

"Madness!" Gwenda sighed and followed after her, though she secretly wanted to know what Victoria had planned. She wanted to leave just as much as she did, and if her friend could think of a good enough escape plan, nothing could hold her back.


	8. Chapter Seven: Escape

**Chapter Seven: Escape  
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_May 10__th__ 1910 _

Night came quickly to the farm.

After spending the whole day working up until nearly seven, the slaves would head slowly and mournfully back towards Lucifer's Cage. They were given cold, pitiful scraps of meat to eat, with the occasional stone cold vegetables and whatever was left over from the Parrish's breakfast and lunch. They had twenty minutes to eat, though most of the slaves got done with their minimal meals quickly, or were so sore and tired they could barely manage the revolting food. The length was because The Minder had his own dinner to eat, which was usually hot and warm, the smell creeping out and tempting the slaves.  
>After dinner, they had ten minutes to make themselves as clean and tidy as possible. There were two troths on either side of the silo, and the different genders would get as much of the grime off as possible. They would then change into their nightclothes and get ready for an inspection from The Minder. He always used this as an opportunity to punish them some more, making someone sleep outside for small things like dirty hands or messed up sheets. If they did something truly "terrible", than The Minder made them sleep in the freezing mud naked or spend the entire night running around the complex.<p>

After this malicious mental torture from the twisted old man, as the slaves would stand in fear, worried about being punished for having unclean hair, they would finally be able to sleep. After the long, tiresome days they had, the floor was about the highest comfort they got, and they were pleased to be able to slip away from their horror that was their life.

However, two slaves weren't having any relief.

It had been exactly one week since Victoria and Gwenda had first discussed planning to escape, and tonight they were going to put it into action. They had spent the past six nights planning and preparing for their jailbreak. Several years ago, a trio of boys had tried to escape at the dead of night. Edmund hang their corpses from a tree outside their silo the next morning, each with a bullet wound between their eyes, so the two girls knew they couldn't just waltz out of here.  
>The two monitored their surroundings each night, taking turns to check things over so they didn't stuff anything up with tiredness. Victoria flirted with one of th male slaves and was able to get his watch and a pen, and they began to record times of when things occurred. After their sleuthing, the girls learnt that there was a guard shift between Victor and Marvin: one from nine pm, their lights out, to two am, and the second from two am to seven am. Edmund would come and check on things if he was tired, which had occurred once on Wednesday and Saturday, and twice the night previously, Monday. The two guards rode Tauros, whilst Edmund rode his Rapidash on Wednesday and once on Monday. Most importantly, the girls learnt that a goods train came past between half past one and half past two.<p>

With this information, Victoria and Gwenda combined it with the facts they already knew. The Minder slept in a small yet well furnished hut about one hundred metres from the silo, but whilst he could fall asleep very easily, he also could awake easily, as they'd all seen during the fateful escape attempt. Gwenda had also tested the hedge whilst pruning it on Thursday, sneaking some hedge clippers under her dress just in case. The two realised there was some concrete in between the hedges, which hindered their plan of crawling through onto the other side. But they quickly formed a way around this, and the girls had their perfect plan laid out and ready to go.

Thankfully, everyone fell asleep pretty early that night. It had been a tiresome day as several Tauros had broken free, and they all pitched in to get them back into their pens. Victoria was happy none of the others were awake: they might have tried to talk them out of running, or tried to go with them. The two girls couldn't handle having that many people with them, as it would attract too much attention if too many fled. But Victoria was sad that they wouldn't get a chance to say goodbye. Whilst she closest with Gwenda, the two girls still got on well with some of the other girls. They all bonded well enough at night, and she was sad to be leaving them all stuck here.

But the more Victoria thought about it, the more she was glad to be leaving. This farm had been her hell for the past two years, and she wanted nothing more to get out of here. She wanted to leave The Minder, Edmund, Victor, Marvin, Lucifer's Cage, The Shack, all of it behind! Victoria was ready to leave, and was ready to bring this place down.

"It's one thirty now," Gwenda's voice whispered through the dark silence nearby, and Victoria nodded slowly. "We need to head off."

"I know, I know!" Victoria hissed back. Her nerves were getting the better of her, and she shaking as she slowly and quietly ascended. Moonlight shone through a crack in the wooden wall next to them, highlighting Gwenda's face. She looked about as nervous as Victoria felt, and the two friends exchanged reassuring smiles.

"Got everything?" Gwenda asked. She had a few small knick knacks and her tattered, black covered book tucked down her blouse on one side, the only items she owned. The hedge clippers were sticking out of her belt as well, ready for use in case someone got in their way.

"Nearly," Victoria replied, and looked mournfully down at the few things she owned. It was pitiful how they had so little freedom, but Victoria treasured the two things she owned. She cradled her mother's hand mirror for a moment, thinking about her lost parents. How would they feel to know the life she was living? Victoria rarely got a chance to think about them, but she knew they'd want her to move on, not be stuck here.

"Don't worry, I will." Victoria whispered, and put the mirror in her pocket. She than grabbed two articles: the old yellowed one she'd had for years, and one she had cut out from Grace's newspaper last week, both of them about the Star Festival. The girls knew little about the festival, but they knew the new one was in a few weeks, and they needed to be there on the night.

"Come on!" Gwenda said, grabbing Victoria by the arm. "We can't be late!" Victoria put the articles in with the mirror, feeling slightly more determined than before, and followed Gwenda. The two girls moved straight through the girls, as there was always space here so people could move down the stairs if need be. One of the panels creaked as Victoria stepped on it, but they couldn't bother about that now. The girls moved quickly and as stealthily as possible down the staircase, which ended right by the door. None of the boys stirred as Victoria and Gwenda nearly leapt off the stairs and rushed outside through the open doorway.

It was a cool night, with a gentle breeze striking them as soon as they got out. The stars twinkled magically above their heads, and the hedge leaves danced silently around them in the wind. The hedge looked particularly tall and daunting in the dark, but the girls couldn't worry about their plan failing now: they needed as much confidence as possible.

"Remember, stick to the hedge as we run up!" Victoria reminded Gwenda. They needed to run up the untouched areas of the farm in order to remain undetected. They had stolen some black clothing whilst doing the laundry, and were wearing matching black shirts and an old dress of Grace's they'd cut up and tied in knots to stay up. Victoria looked at Gwenda, waiting for a response. Her friend was just standing there, her eyes looking watery in the moonlight.

"What's wrong?" Victoria asked, though she had a feeling of what was to come.

"I… I… I just want to say… if something bad happens, you are my best friend!" Gwenda wailed, and sobbed as she collapsed into a hug with Victoria. Victoria was touched by this, and felt her own tears building up. The two stood there for a moment, embracing as they cried silently. It was a risky thing they were about to do, and they both knew there was a chance of dying. It was good to have this reassurance, and Victoria would have happily stayed like this than go and risk her life. But she suddenly heard a gasp, and quickly let go of Gwenda and leapt backwards.

"Who's there?" Victoria whispered into the night. Gwenda turned around in fright, wiping her tears away. A figure appeared from behind Lucifer's Cage, and the girl's jaws nearly dropped. Andrew was standing there, wearing absolutely nothing, but with a bucket placed conveniently in front of his genitals. Victoria felt her breathe leave her, and Gwenda had to steady her to prevent her from fainting in shock.

"What are you two doing here?" Andrew asked in an angry whisper.

"We could ask you the same thing!" Gwenda smirked. Andrew shifted uncomfortably, rather embarrassed about being caught here, but Victoria thought it was one of the greatest sights she'd ever seen.

"My clothes were dirty, so Minder is making me put all my sheets and clothes in a bucket of mud and than wash them out," Andrew explained timidly, "but don't change the subject! What are you two planning on doing?"

"We're getting out of here," Gwenda explained. Victoria remembered why they were here, and turned away from Andrew's chest to get a grip of herself. Andrew looked horrified, and he nearly dropped the bucket in surprise.

"You're… what the… how… escape….?" He couldn't put a sentence together in his surprise, and Victoria used this to her advantage.

"You can't tell anyone you saw us, alright? We need to get out of here quickly: our train should be coming past any minute, and we need to go and get Millicent." Victoria wanted to say goodbye, let her emotions she had been secretly harbouring about him come out. But before anyone could say another word, an angry voice suddenly echoed across the darkness.

"What's going on out here?" The Minder bellowed. "Is that you Andrew, or someone else?" The three of them froze: if either of the girls moved now, the wretched old man might notice them, and then they'd get into trouble.

"What should we do?" Victoria hissed as quietly as possible at Gwenda. Her friend was shaking in fear, tears beginning to come down now. Than, without warning, Gwenda turned and sprinted up the slow incline towards the Parrish house.

"GWENDA!" Victoria screamed, not caring if The Minder heard her: he'd surely notice something moving across the field, and he'd know it was a slave. With a quick glance at Andrew, who eyes were bulging and frightful, Victoria chased after her friend. The Minder bellowed something at them that Victoria couldn't make out, and then the sharp sound of whistle cut through the silent night. Their plan was ruined now: whoever was on duty would surely come straight for them, and they'd never make it to Millicent now. The girls would never be able to escape... they wouldn't even survive the night.

"GWENDA YOU FOOL!" Victoria bellowed, her legs pounding against the hard ground. Why was she even bothering to run? A loud shout sounded behind them, and the sound of a Tauros running filled the air. Victoria knew why: she had to be with Gwenda, she couldn't die without being with her friend. But Gwenda was ignoring her question, sweat beginning to mingle with her tears as she raced towards the fancy house and stables.

"MILLICENT!" She screamed into the night. "MILLICENT, WE NEED YOU! MILLICEEEEEENT!" Victoria was getting tired from running, and she had no idea if the Miltank would even be able to hear them. They hadn't consulted Millicent about it, just hoping she would be awake when they arrived. Well, they definitely needed to be awake now. The pounding was getting louder, and Victoria glanced around: Victor was on patrol tonight, and his Tauros looked just as angry as he did as they got closer and closer towards the helpless girls. But to make things worse, another figure was racing towards them: Edmund's Rapidash was lighting up the surrounding area, his flames illuminating the furious, twisted face their cruel master was wearing. Victoria knew they were dead now. There was no way Edmund would let them escape.

"MILLICEEEENT, QUICKLY!" Gwenda screamed again, but she already sounded hoarse and tired, and Victoria hadn't realised she had caught up with her. She grabbed her friend and pulled her to a stop.

"You idiot! We could have gone back upstairs!" Victoria hissed, watching fearfully as the two Parrish's got closer.

"It was… worth a … try… don't you… think?" Gwenda panted, her legs nearly buckling. Victoria simply nodded and pulled her into another tight embrace. She could understand why she had done it. They had put so much effort into this plan: staying up all night, keeping their notes secret from the girls, stealing the clothes and hedge clippers. Victoria probably would have sprinted off herself a few seconds later if Gwenda hadn't gone first, just to see if they could make it. Yet they hadn't gotten there in time. All this effort… planning… getting their hopes up… all for nothing.

"FLAMETHROWER!" Edmund's furious voice screamed into the night, and Gwenda screamed as a jet of fire came shooting at them. Victoria pulled her to the ground, waiting for the flames to shoot over them. But the Flamethrower didn't touch them: Victoria looked around fearfully, and stared in shock as the grass began to burn red and orange. Smoke was already beginning to rise up as a semi-circle formed around the girls, trapping them in. Victoria could feel her tears building up. They were stuck here now. There was no way they could escape. They were cornered, sitting Psyducks for what was about to happen to them.

"We've got them Father, we've got them!" Victor shouted gleefully as his Tauros came to a halt, pacing the ground on the spot and shooting nasty looks at the girls. Edmund didn't reply: he just brought his Rapidash to a stop alongside the flames. The farmer was staring at the girls with a mixture of twisted rage and sickening happiness. He was furious that they had tried to escape, but now felt like a hunter that had finally caught the creature he was after.

"You girls should have known that you can't escape from these walls!" Edmund snarled, and let out a malicious, booming laugh. Victor tried to copy it, but it sounded forced and stupid, just like his attitude. Victoria and Gwenda clutched each other tightly as the laughing continued, both of them crying desperately. They could hear a whistle in the distance, knowing it was their train that would be coming past soon. They had come so close to escaping, so close to breaking free from this hellish farm. _Let him kill us! _Victoria thought sadly. _We've already lost… there's nothing he can do._

"TAAAANK!" A thunderous 'moo' broke through the laughter, and Edmund snapped around. Victoria and Gwenda exchanged looks of excitement, feeling their hope rising up again. There was Millicent, running down towards them all, a look of pure fury on her face. It was odd to see her bouncing and hobbling towards them, but they knew she was doing it for them.

"Miltank Mil Miiiiiilll!" Millicent bellowed. Edmund's happiness faded away as quickly as it had come, his plan for an easy kill dashed.

"Fire Blast!" He commanded.

"You use something too Tauros!" Victor said stupidly. Rapidash neighed and opened his mouth wide, releasing a powerful ball of fire that turned and rotated, growing outwards and forming into what looked like a star. Tauros glowed yellow, and a bolt of electricity was emitted from him, nearly frying Victor as it was released.

"MILLICENT, NO!" Victoria screamed, but the Miltank kept on running, straight towards the attacks. Seconds before they struck, Victoria swore Miltank glowed white, but the burst of yellow and orange completely covered it. Gwenda let out a sob as Millicent rolled backwards, landing in the bushes Grace kept for herbs and spices. Their only chance of survival was gone, and Edmund was even angrier now.

"We'll have to put that stupid thing down in the morning!" He hissed, turning his attention back towards the girls. The farmer pulled something out from his pocket: it was a shining silver revolver, almost glowing in the firelight. Edmund clutched the wooden handle and grinned viciously at the girls. Victor began laughing dopily again, and Victoria and Gwenda backed up towards the hedge.

"Say your prayers girls!" Edmund hissed with delight, and put his finger on the trigger.

"Wait!" Everyone turned around, and for a shining second, the girls thought someone else had come to their rescue. Was it Andrew, Grace, one of the other slaves? No. It was The Minder, limping towards them as fast as possible, a look of pure delight on his face to rival Edmund's.

"You don't think you could kill them without me, could you?" The old man laughed, coming to a rest by leaning on his cane. Edmund laughed and nodded, and turned back towards the girls. They had lost all hope now. The sound of the steam engine chugging along the track was getting closer and closer. Victoria and Gwenda's hands interlocked and they shut their eyes. This was it… they were going to die.

"Goodbye girls," Edmund snarled, repositioning his gun. "It'll be a pity to have to clean your blood up, but it'll be worth it!" The Minder and Victor laughed loudly, and Victoria and Gwenda tensed up, waiting for the bullet, waiting for the end….

"YAAAAAAH!"

"MIIIIIIIIIIIIIL!"

Within a second, everything changed.

Edmund paused, his finger a centimetre away from pulling the trigger, and turned around. Two cries had appeared, one on either side of the semi circle. Victoria and Gwenda opened their eyes in shock, and saw that the three men were in a state of panic now, wondering what was going on. One cry was obviously Millicent, but they had no idea who the other was.

"It's Andrew!" Victoria whispered. The fire was beginning to spread across the grass, lighting up even more of the fields. She could see Andrew running as fast as possible, holding something in both of his hands. The Minder turned around, hearing his footsteps approaching, but was too late: Andrew let out another shout and swung around, revealing he was carrying two buckets in his hands. One smashed into the Minder's stomach, causing him to cry out and double over, while the second smashed into his head. The vicious old man was sent sprawling backwards, his cane and whip flying from his hand.

"Shit!" Edmund hissed, watching as the Minder rolled backwards before slumping into a heap. The surprise appearance of Andrew had thrown him, and he needed to get things back into his court. But as he turned his focus back onto the gun, Edmund didn't realise Andrew was still spinning. With a sudden shout, the male slave let go of one bucket, the one filled with mud.

"DIVE!" Victoria cried, and pulled Gwenda to the ground before Edmund could fire. The bucket spiralled through the air and smashed into Edmund's head, just as he pulled the trigger. The bullet smashed into the hedge, doing no damage to either of the girls whatsoever. Edmund slumped off Rapidash and onto the ground, his gun falling into the flames. The bucket had broken on impact, and the mud had been scatted across Rapidash, getting onto his flames and into his eyes.

"DAASSSSSHHH!" The fiery Pokemon neighed, blinded by the mud. He released a Flamethrower in his rage, but in his blind rage, the jet of flames shot off towards the wrong target: Victor had realised it was all up to him, and had been able to direct Tauros towards Andrew when the flames suddenly struck him. He screamed girlishly as he was blasted off Tauros, landing onto the fire and writhing in pain.

Victoria and Gwenda lay on the ground for a minute, taking in what had just happened. They thought they were going to be killed. They thought their plans were over. But they'd been saved. The Minder and Edmund were both unconscious, and Victor was screaming in pain. Marvin would be here soon, but they needed time to take it all in…. they had another chance to be free!

"What the hell were you thinking?" The two girls looked up, still breathing heavily in shock. Andrew was emptying the other bucket over the flames, dousing them with the water inside. Victoria only noticed now that he was wearing clothes, which were soaking wet, and wished he had left them off. But she shook her head, needing to focus on the situation at hand.

"What do you mean?" Gwenda said, leaping to her feet, shaking slightly from the shock of the situation. Rapidash was still fuming, whilst Tauros seemed rather stunned by the situation.

"You know trying to runaway from here is so risky!" Andrew snapped. "I don't want to see anyone getting killed so I had to save you, but if I stay behind, they'll kill _me _instead!"

"Well we're so sorry that we hate it here!" Gwenda snapped back, glaring up at the much taller boy. "Our plan could have worked if The Minder hadn't woken up, and-"

"And if you hadn't run off as well!" Andrew added, and Gwenda's eyes narrowed. Victoria, sensing the tension, stood between them.

"There's no time to argue- listen!" She said, and the two fell silent. The chugging of the steam engine was getting louder and louder, meaning it was nearly about to come past. "If we want to get out of here, we need to get onto the other side of this hedge!" Andrew wanted to ask something, but just sighed and shrugged: they had it sorted, so he had to trust them.

"Now, what happened to Millicent?" Victoria said. "She cried out just after you did…" There was a loud thump, and as if on cue, Millicent suddenly landed next to them, having leapt over the flames. She was indeed glowing white, and smiling rather proudly about something. Victoria and Gwenda instantly hugged her, unable to contain themselves: their old friend, and now possible saviour, was here!

"Tank Mil Mil Miltank!" Millicent said happily, and stared down at the flames, the unconscious bodies (Victor had stopped screaming and writhing) and Tauros, who backed away rather nervously.

"No time for a hug or a catch up!" Andrew said irritably, as it looked like Gwenda had been about to say something to the Miltank. "Our train's coming, so we need to get out of here, quickly!"

"Y-y-your coming w-with us?" Victoria stuttered. Her heart was suddenly in a flutter, and she almost completely forgot about the situation they were in. She and Andrew… together at last.

"Of course I am! I'm not staying here to be killed!" Andrew replied shortly, and stared at the unconscious figures. They were all monsters, and they would kill any of them if they had the chance. The steam engine was almost coming past: it was time to leave.

"Miltank Mil Mil!" Millicent had worked out what they were doing, and she stared towards the wall, looking very determined. Victoria and Gwenda went to let go of her, but Millicent pulled them in closer. She pointed at Andrew and then at her neck, the message rather simply. Andrew nodded and jumped onto her back, putting his arms around her neck. Millicent walked towards the hedge, the sound of the steam engine very audible on the other side. She put her hands against the leafy hedge and shut her eyes. Her body shone a dazzling white, and the three were nearly blinded.

"TAAAAAAAAAAAANK!" She mooed. Victoria shut her eyes as the hedge was suddenly blasted apart. The light was so bright she could see it through her eyelids, but it disappeared seconds after the hedge was destroyed. Victoria blinked and stared through the hole: the leafy vine and the stone wall had been obliterated, with a hole large enough for Millicent to get through.

"This is it… we're finally free!" Victoria whispered. Her heart was pounding, her body shaking, her mind racing… it was finally happening: she was finally leaving.  
>"MIL!" Millicent boomed dramatically, and she ran through the hole. The vines and the jagged rock scratched their backs as they moved through, leaving Miltank Meadows behind them. The goods train was moving quickly past, gathering speed as it began to head down the incline towards Olivine City. The train was on the track closest to the hedge, and Victoria was glad it hadn't been damaged by the attack Millicent had used. Millicent leapt dramatically forwards, her head glowing a mixture of pink and blue. A wagon was right in front of them, and the door to it was blown apart when Millicent's head touched it. They landed on the wooden floor of the wagon, rolling off Millicent and hitting the crates stacked high around them.<p>

They all lay there for a second, breathing deeply, all of their minds racing. Than Andrew began to laugh. It seemed like a strange thing to do after what had happened, but he just began laughing. Within seconds, Gwenda began laughing as well, snorting in a cutesy fashion every few seconds. Victoria couldn't deny herself and began laughing too. She crawled towards where the door should have been and stared out of it: the hedge was flying past them, the train picking up speed and leaving the flat surface behind. And there, in the distance, was Olivine. Victoria could only see little pinpricks of light, not being close enough to see anything else, but it was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen.

Finally, she was free.


	9. Part Two: Voyage of the Johto Jewel

**Part Two: The Voyage of the Johto Jewel**

As well as being one of the biggest industrial centres of the Johto region, Olivine City was a major tourist attraction for those that could afford it. Many people would travel here to enjoy the most beautiful golden sandy beaches in the region, smell the wonderful aroma wafting from the sparkling blue ocean, and made for a very popular family outing with large hilly grasslands around the area providing perfect picnic spots. A large market was held every Saturday, and people would make a journey just to buy some of the best fruit, vegetables, furnishings, jewellery and other luxury items.

Olivine offered another major attraction for the rich: boats.

The majority of Johto was landlocked, and the places around water couldn't accommodate a boating population. Olivine had fixed this issue for the region, building the largest port system any city had ever held. A huge wooden and concrete dock was created, with enough space to moor around one hundred different boats. Boats of different shapes and sizes had soon filled the waters, and people came across the region just to have a look at all the fantastic vessels floating before their eyes, even if they were a long way off from owning them.

Asides from being able to handle all of these boats, another part of the Olivine Port was attracting major international attention. Two cruise ship docks had been built, along with a small ferry terminal, and magnificent ships were now beginning to come into port. Around twelve cruise ships had docked at Olivine since the opening, and the city's residents were amazed at the sheer beauty these vessels brought. The luxurious liners were the object of many people's imaginations, wondering what happened inside the hundreds of rooms, what the food, entertainment, experience was like. Much smaller ferries were able to go between regions, but the cruise liners were the things you wanted to go on if you had the money: they were big, they were beautiful, they were simply amazing.


	10. Chapter Eight: Decisions

**Chapter Eight: Decisions**

The sun had only just risen by the time the train arrived in Olivine. A golden orange tinge was painted across the sky as the day slowly began, reflected magnificently in the water below. The steam engine hauling the many vans and trucks began to slow down upon entering the city, a thin column of smoke and steam mixing with that coming from the chimney stacks of the surrounding houses. The railway lines cut right through the quaint little stone cottages, and many people already going to work stopped on their front doorsteps and watched as the line of trucks curved slowly through the city.

It was a five minute journey to get from the city entrance to the port, where the train curved and pulled up alongside a low platform. The fresh smell of sea air instantly struck the driver and fireman as they stepped out of the cab, watching as Mantyke and Mantine skirted across the surface, moving in between the numerous yachts and vessels obscuring their path. After a moment of staring at the beautiful boats, the crew left to go and sign in at the nearby office, leaving the workers to unload their vans shortly.

As soon as they were out of the way, Victoria, Gwenda, Andrew and Millicent piled out of their broken van.

It had been a few hours since they had escaped from Miltank Meadows: the train had to go down a steep hill, meaning it would have to go slowly to avoid getting out of control. All four of them were very stiff from their battle with the Parrish's, landing in the van and then having to stay there for all that time, so they took a quick moment to stretch their limbs. Victoria's heart was racing at a mile a minute: she was free… for the first time in years, she was free…. She smelt the fresh sea air, watched the Mantine soaring above the boats, took in the suns golden reflection… she was free! Victoria looked over at Gwenda, who was beaming brightly, staring wide eyed at the sea like a little child.

"This is just…" Gwenda began to say, but she was too speechless to say anything else. Victoria could only nod: the feeling rushing through her body couldn't be put into words. It was a sort of happiness she hadn't felt since her parents had been murdered. They had left Miltank Meadows behind, and she was now here by the ocean for the first time in her life. The smell, the sights, the sounds… it was a lot to take in! Victoria was tempted to rush forwards and leap into the ocean when someone coughed behind her.

"So, what's the big plan now?" Andrew grumbled as he walked forwards, also staring at the ocean but without the same joy and happiness the girls had. Millicent was leaning against a van, rummaging through it look for food. "We've escaped and all, and that's great, but where are we going to from here?" Victoria felt the smile fall off her face, and she her gaze full upon the filthy ground they were standing on. They hadn't but much planning into what would happen after they escaped. Of course they would be going to Hoenn, but Victoria hadn't thought about how they'd get there: all their attention had been towards how they would escape.

Now that Andrew had said it, the situation they were in suddenly dawned on her. Their only possessions were the clothes on their backs, hedge clippers, and Victoria's book, hand mirror and the articles on the Star Festival. There was no way they'd be able to get to Hoenn using just these things, but if they remained in Johto, there was a chance that Edmund or The Minder would find them and kill them: they did know about a bunch of slaves hidden from public eye, and that wouldn't do well for business. For now, they would be trapped in this port, unable to carry on towards Hoenn…

"Way to ruin our mood!" Gwenda huffed at Andrew, glaring at him with her arms crossed, shooting him the nastiest of looks.

"Hey, I'm just being realistic, thanks!" Andrew snapped back. "I thought you guys would have planned things out properly  
>before you left!"<p>

"We had a decent escape plan, didn't we!" Gwenda shouted back, ignoring as Millicent threw a suitcase out of the van.

"Oh don't get me started on that!" Andrew growled. "We were nearly killed, and we've just made Edmund angry with us! This plan is just awful, and –"

"Be quiet you two!" Victoria hissed, suddenly scurrying forwards. Gwenda and Andrew shot one last glare at each other before seeing what Victoria was doing: she was grabbing items from the suitcase Millicent had discarded which had burst open upon impact. A number of large flowing dresses and suits in varying sizes had been packed tightly inside but were now strewn across the concrete, becoming dirty and damaged. Andrew examined a fine tie whilst Gwenda picked up a fancy hat and tried it on, staring at her reflecting in a broken hand mirror lying discarded on the ground. But Victoria was ignoring the clothes for now, and instead had gone for four large pieces of paper that were sticking out of a coat pocket: they were very fine to touch and had been delicately written on in thin black ink, and Victoria knew at once that these were very fancy. The text written on each of them was nearly identical, and Victoria read the first one with interest:

_The following ticket allows for ONE ADULT to ride onboard the _Johto Jewel _ferry, departing from Olivine City Port, Johto, at nine' o'clock in the morning of May the 11__th__ 1910, on a return trip to Slateport City, Hoenn , arriving at approximately ten' o'clock in the evening of May the 15__th__, 1910. _

_The ticket allows for ONE ADULT to stay in Room 4B of the _Johto Jewel _and enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner in the dining hall, the nightly entertainment and enjoy the leisure's onboard for no additional cost._

_Authorised: March 1__st__ 1910 _

Victoria felt her excitement rise up again, and she nearly squealed excitedly in delight. She stifled the noise, but Andrew and Gwenda both looked curiously down at her, still examining some of the clothes that had fallen out.

"There are four tickets here!" Victoria explained, leaping up and twirling around excitedly. "There is a ship called the _Johto Jewel _heading to Hoenn today – this morning in fact!" Gwenda's jaw dropped and Andrew's eyes bulged in shock: even Millicent looked up curiously, the remnants of a bag of fruit lying by her feet.

"OH MY GOSH!" Gwenda squealed, and she and Victoria hugged each other, unable to contain their excitement any longer.

"This means we can get to Hoenn!" The two squealed and delight and spun around happily, not noticing as Andrew bent towards the suitcase with a curious look on his face, not sharing in their happiness.

"Where do this the ship dock?" Andrew asked, and Victoria saw he had pulled a piece of paper out from the suitcase and unfolded it: it was a yellowed map of the Hoenn region, with several points marked in red ink, along with a number of different spots circled and notes scribbled here and there.

"Looks like someone was going on a trip," Gwenda muttered.

"Slateport City," Victoria said, checking the ticket and than the map. Gwenda pointed one of the most southern regions of the map: a large harbour city located right next to a beach. "And than we have to go to Lilycove City for the Star Festival," and Andrew pointed at a north eastern city on the map, a considerably smaller city nearly on the opposite side of the region past a forest. Victoria's happiness temporarily deflated as she took in how far about the two places were, but than gasped and pointed to the top of the map as her eyes scanned looking for a route. "There's a railway line! All we have to do is get onboard and then we can get to Lilycove from there!"

"That's a good plan, but we'd still have to walk all the way there," Andrew said gravely, and traced his finger from Slateport City up along a twisting route, through another city, over a desert region before arriving at the station. "And how do you plan on us getting onboard this ship anyway?"

"We have the tickets, and we have clothes!" Gwenda said, ignoring Andrew's negativity and grabbing handfuls of the outfits. "I think a family was going to go on holiday. Their luggage must have gone ahead without them…"

"Too bad for them then," Victoria laughed, and dumped her book and hand mirror into the suitcase: her mind was clearly made up.

"We're going to steal these people's tickets and luggage?" Andrew said with a frown and folded his arms. Victoria turned on him, her eyes narrowing and her joy quickly fading from her face.

"I'm sick of you questioning us!" She snapped. "If you don't want to come with us than go back to Miltank Meadows, I'm sure they'd be so willing to allow you to continue live there as if nothing happened! But I'm going to Hoenn, and if that means stealing some rich people's clothes, than so be it! I'm going to the Star Festival and I don't care what I have to do to get there, but I don't need _you _holding us back!" And she grabbed the suitcase and passed a pink dress to Gwenda, who happily examined her reflection in the water. Andrew followed her with his eyes, and he saw several workers around a boat nearby, giving them shifty looks. It must look odd for two black girls and a Miltank to be rummaging through trucks, and Andrew didn't want anyone to come and investigate. And he knew catching the ship was the best thing they could do, even if it was technically stealing. He had no intention of going back to Miltank Meadows, and was rather interested by what the Star Festival could do for them.

"Fine!" Andrew said with a sigh, and he grabbed a shirt out of the trunk. Victoria felt her happiness triple and she looked up into his handsome face: finally, a chance to be close to him. As an image of them standing on the deck, drinking wine and staring romantically into each other's eyes formed in her had, a soft clunking noise sounded at her feet: Victoria looked down as several different Apricorn Balls rolled noisily around her feet, having fallen out of the latest dress she had picked up. Victoria bent down and picked them up, wondering what interesting Pokemon were held inside, but pressing the buttons revealed they were simply empty.

"Maybe the family were planning on capturing some rare Pokemon?" Andrew suggested as Gwenda walked over, practically hugging her new dress.

"Probably…" Victoria mumbled, her attention more focused towards Millicent: the Miltank was hungrily scoffing down the fruit, not noticing as Victoria raised the empty Heavy Ball up, a grin forming on her face: a plan was beginning to form… a plan to make things for them a lot easier. "You two better get ready: we have a boat to catch!"

***

A loud whistle echoed through the port at exactly one minute to nine: the _Johto Jewel _was ready to depart for its journey to Hoenn.

The boat was a cross between a ferry and a cruise ship: it wasn't tall enough to be one of the luxurious liners, yet it wasn't small or weak enough to be considered a ferry. The _Johto Jewel_ could be seen as simply a mixture of the two. With a gleaming black hull, polished wooden deck and blue with white trimming for the main body, the boat sat at a rather comfortable size as it sent smoke rising slowly into the sky. It was still luxurious for its size, and the majority of passengers were onboard already, ready to set sail for their adventure with a glass of drink in their hands, all of them wearing fabulous suits and gowns. A small crowd of local people were staring up at it from the port, watching the majestic metal beast with awe, still not quite used to having this vessels in their backyards. A long gangplank was attached between the boat and pier, with an attendant waiting at each end to greet and help the passengers, but they were ready to pull it up: most of the passengers were onboard, and if any hadn't got on yet, there time was quickly fading away.

"Wait!" A shout sounded from across the pier, just as the attendant on the pier had been about to move the gangplank away. The Olivinians turned around as a white boy wearing a thick black suit and two black girls, dressed in elegant nearly identical pink dresses, sprinted forwards, their feet echoing on the thick concrete pier. Several of them scowled and muttered between themselves, and the attendant looked rather stunned.

"So sorry, we were held up at the Pokemon Center," the white man explained, puffing as he passed over several tickets. The attendant quickly examined them, his eyes narrowing as he shot the two black girls a look, clearly mistrusting of them and not approving of this group. However, everything seemed legitimate, and he couldn't turn them away.

"Hurry up," the attendant grunted, and the younger man smiled and accepted his tickets, before rushing up the gangplank and onto the ship, the two black girls behind him, ignoring another look from the attendant at top. With no one else in sight, the attendant grabbed the gangplank and pushed it up, allowing the second attendant to pull it up and attached it to the side of the boat. A few minutes later, the piercing whistle sounded again, and the people on the ground clapped and cheered as the _Johto Jewel _pulled away and began to push through the water, ready to head for Hoenn.

Watching from the deck, waving to the crowds with all the other passengers, Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew could barely contain their grins as they watched Johto creeping further away from them: they had escaped, and were now free as they headed towards Hoenn. Even getting shot a foul look from the attendant couldn't dampen their spirits, and the three were laughing and beaming, on a strong high of happiness.

"I can't believe we've pulled this off!" Gwenda squealed excitedly, dancing with joy.

"I was so sure the guy would send us away!" Victoria said, her smile as wide as it could possible be. She and Gwenda let out a happy yell and wrapped their arms around each other, leaping around in a circle and causing Andrew to laugh even louder, even them a few glares through several elderly women that were walking past.

"I guess I should take our luggage to our room," Andrew said, wiping tears away from his eyes, "than I think we should have a look at the facilities this ship has to offer!"

"I'll come too, I can't wait to see what beds we have!" Gwenda said, practically yelling and ran off ahead, grabbing one of the suitcases and causing the elderly ladies to scoff. Andrew laughed again and glanced towards Victoria.

"Do you want to come too?"

"Give me a moment," Victoria replied, and Andrew nodded, walking slowly off. Victoria turned back towards Johto, which was getting smaller and smaller with each movement through the waves: Lucifer's Cage was barely visible from this distance, the top of the roof poking out over the top of the hedge. Victoria pulled a Heavy Ball out from the dress pocket and clutched it hard in her hands, a tear streaming down her now sullen and angry face.

"I'm going to find Jirachi," She whispered to fading region, "I'm going to find it, and I'm going to make you suffer for everything you've done for us." Wiping the tear away, Victoria turned and walked with her head hung high towards her cabin, a new found determination swelling inside her as she began to plot her revenge.


	11. Chapter Nine: Anger

**Chapter Nine: Anger**

"EDMUND, STOP IT! STOP IT! NO, STOP!"  
>The screaming and shouting echoed inside the large living space. It was usually a rather nice room, with fine wooden benches and chairs covered in bright handmade blankets, placed around a small bookshelf, a table of knickknacks and a wooden piano placed against the wall. The yellow walls were lit up by several gas lamps placed neatly around the wall, casting a pleasant warm glow around the room. A fireplace was situated in the far corner, and the warming heat that came from it usually made it seem like a typical family room, where you could sit down with a book or spend time bonding.<p>

In the last five minutes, it had completely changed.

Edmund Parrish stood in the middle of the room, breathing deeply and angrily. The wreckage of his rage lay around him, the once wholesome family room destroyed. One of the wooden benches had been snapped cleanly in two, lying next to overthrown bookcase. The table of knickknacks had been flipped over, and the small collectables that hadn't shattered at this had been thrown violently around the room. Several of the lamps had been shattered, and most of the blankets had been thrown into the fire, causing the room to become stifling hot as the fire grew and raged behind its bracket.

Victor and Marvin were standing by the doorway, having watched the destruction with wide eyes but had done nothing to stop it. Victor's skin was red and raw following being in the fire, but he hadn't been severely burnt as it was Pokemon fire, which couldn't cause as harm to humans as it did to Pokemon. The Minder was sitting in a chair next to them, his head wrapped in bandages and a cushion placed over his stomach. His cane and whip rested besides him, the latter's tip still covered in blood from striking nearly all the slaves only a few minutes before. Grace was the final person in the room, but she wasn't standing like the men: the mother of the household lay bruised and bleeding on one of the chairs, tears streaming down her face. She was tenderly clutching her ribs and stomach, and anyone who walked in would think she had just gone up against a boxer. Neither her sons nor The Minder bothered to help her or had tried to stop her beating, simply watching as Edmund vented his anger.

It was easy, in the minds of his sons and The Minder, to understand why Edmund was so angry. For the first time in about fifteen years, a slave had escaped. Not just one, but three. They had thwarted him, caused damage to himself and his property, and had taken one of his Miltank with him. A sheet of metal had been attached to the hole in the hedge, surrounded by a semi circle of burnt grass that left an ugly, insulting reminder about what had happened only a few hours ago. Edmund felt humiliated and embarrassed: never before had a slave successfully outsmarted him, escaped him, beaten him. What if it caused a boost in morale? What if others tried to escape before the wall was fixed? The Minder had whipped halve the slaves towards bleeding point, but Edmund wouldn't be surprised if they were already whispering amongst themselves, planning their own way to escape.

However, this wasn't the main reason why Edmund was mad.

For fifteen years Edmund had been running this farm, and for fifteen years he had kept his slaves hidden away, just like his father had for years before him, and his grandfather before that. It was a family secret: some may see it as a dark, horrible way to run a farm but it was necessary for the Parrish's. In order to make a profit from the large amount of stock they had, and enjoy the money that made, the Parrish's had found that slavery was the best option for them: it gave them good publicity when they adopted the poor little orphans, and they had free labour until the slave died. Never in all this time had anyone found out about them. People presumed that the slaves were well treated, had good accommodation in the fabulous farmhouse, and were sent on their merry way when they reached eighteen. More companies and businesses brought from Miltank Meadows as they see it as a friendly, community supportive farm and that they would benefit from supporting them by buying their products. Edmund couldn't bare to think about what would happen if they discovered what really happened behind their high, brick enforced hedge… if they knew the true horrors hidden inside Lucifer's Cage.

Grace's sobbing broke the tense silence in the room, and Edmund turned to her, his head spinning and not just from his injuries sustained. He watched as his wife held a handkerchief to her lip, which was turning the white silk red, whimpering into it as she clutched her ribs. Edmund didn't feel bad for what he had done: she was too nice to the slaves, probably giving them hope that he had been trying to crush out. And Grace should be use to his violence by now, he had been doing it for years.

"Go clean yourself up," Edmund hissed coldly. Grace shot him a furious look through her bloodshot, bruised and teary eyes, before getting unsteadily to her feet and hobbling off, shooting her sons and The Minder a nasty look as she went. Edmund turned and watched her leave, and than turned towards his sons. Victor and Marvin had exchanged looks after their mother left, but turned their attention fully back towards their father.

"Go and let the slaves out," Edmund commanded. "Stand guard by the hole, and if you see them so much as look at each other, don't be afraid to use the spare whips on them, alright?"

"Yes Father," Marvin said slowly, while Victor simply nodded, still in pain from the previous night. The two boys turned and left the house, and Edmund fell silent once again, listening as Grace's loud sobbing sounded through the door she had left open.

"I hope you will give me a few hours to rest before sending me back to work," The Minder grunted, breaking the tense and angry silence. "I'm not how I used to be: just whipping them before was tiring enough. I'll definitely need a lie down for a few hours, but than I-"

"You'll be lying down for a few days," Edmund said in his deep voice. The Minder stopped talking and stared at his boss with a puzzled look: Edmund had always wanted him to keep on working, even when he injured his leg. What had changed? "You need to rest if you are too initiate the plan I have."

"Plan?" The Minder asked, his curiosity growing, and Edmund simply nodded, staring towards the roaring fire behind him.

"I can't let our secret get out," He hissed. "If those slaves have any brains, they'll probably be trying to expose us, possibly contacting the police as we speak. But I doubt they would do that."

"They were smart enough to break out of here," The Minder reminded Edmund, who turned back around, his thick face twisted in anger.

"I am well aware of that!" He hissed, breathing deeply. "But they have also been shut away from the outside world for many years. They probably want to enjoy their freedom, try and escape the farm and put their lives behind them. That is why I think they could be fleeing Johto, or at least getting as far away from here as possible. I believe they escaped on a train heading south towards Olivine. I want you to go and find out if anyone saw two black girls and a white boy hanging around, and see where they went to."

"You want me to bring them back before they reveal our dirty little secret," The Minder said, nodding as he understood the plan, and Edmund nodded, his face going back into a look of general moodiness. "I suppose you want them alive so you can kill them yourself?" The Minder asked as he stood up, wincing slightly in pain. At this, Edmund began to laugh, the sound deep but cold. He smiled at his slave watcher, flashing his fang like yellow teeth.

"If you have to kill them, than do so. I'd prefer to kill them myself, but I guess they could be tricky little mites. However, I do want their bodies brought back to me," Edmund explained, still beaming broadly. "I want to put their heads on the wall of the silo, as a reminder to anyone who dares to test us again." The Minder's aging face twisted into a smile as well, and he reached into his pocket and pulled out three Level Balls.

"I have the Pokemon I will need in order to find them," He explained, clutching them tightly. Edmund merely nodded, and the Minder took the silence as a cue to leave. He wanted to get the slaves just as much as Edmund: he hated being injured and outsmarted, and wanted to make sure Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew pay for the embarrassing, injuring and undermining him.

"I expect you to leave within two days, though by the end of tomorrow will be preferable," Edmund said. The Minder nodded, grabbing his whip and cane as he put his Level Balls back and hobbled towards the door. Edmund watched him go, before sitting down in one of the few undamaged chairs left in the middle of all the wreckage, staring back towards the blazing fire. The Minder would get the job down, and all of Edmund's worries would disappear. The three slaves would be brought back to him, preferably alive, so Edmund could murder them himself. He wanted to see their eyes turned a misty grey, hear their last breath, laugh as the other slaves watched in terror. Edmund tilted back in his chair and smiled to himself: his life would remain simple, and he secret would remain hidden. There was nothing for him to worry about.

The slaves would be dead within days.


	12. Chapter Ten: Cruising

**Chapter Ten: Cruising**

For nearly twenty four hours, the lives of the escaped slaves were peaceful.

After spending many years trapped behind the brick, hedge covered walls, being beaten and starved and having as little freedom and as doomed a fate as the Pokemon they cared for, all three of them were in good need of rest, relaxation and having a little bit of fun and freedom And fortunately for them, their rooms on the _Johto Jewel_ seemed to be tailored just for them.

They were in adjacent rooms due to the family tickets they had stolen, so Victoria and Gwenda slept in one room and Andrew in the other. It was a huge change from sleeping in the cramped and disgusting Lucifer's Cage: their beds were big and soft, allowing them to sink into them with pleasure and wrap up in the fine silk blankets and thick warm woollen sheets. The rooms were about the same size as each of the rooms at Lucifer's Cage, and all three of them were taken aback by the huge space they now had at their disposal. The walls were white with blue stripes, and photos from the ships construction hang on a wall, giving it a loving, caring feeling. There was a shared bathroom, and they each had a ten minute shower to actually enjoy clean, warm water in private, and then experience a proper toilet compared to a long drop they had been forced to use as slaves.

The three then ventured out to examine the facilities the ship had to offer them. After being made to eat stale food and scraps from the Parrish's meals, the food provided for them on the ship was outstanding. Hot bread with spreads, a large amount of fruit, home baked delights and baked Magikarp and Remoraid were just some of the food available for lunch, and they scoffed it down with multiple glasses of sparkling water, earning them glares for other passengers as they made a bit of a spectacle in their enjoyment. The room itself was magnificent: it had a high ceiling with a mural of water Pokemon dancing around the crystal chandelier, and the red velvet carpet was covered in nearly a hundred circular, white clothed tables in neat little rows.

The only other main feature the ship had was a large swimming at the bow, and Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew were quick to purchase some swimming costumes from the onboard shop in order to enjoy the crystal clear warm water. It was just like being in a gigantic bath tub, and the three splashed and played around for nearly two hours, enjoying the feel of the water and remembering their swimming lessons as children, before retreating inside for dinner. Roast meat, warm vegetables and luxurious chocolate deserts tasted like heaven in their mouths, and other people onboard the ship sneered at the three of them as they scoffed their food down in an animalistic manner, clearly enjoying the meal more than most people would.

"Frankly, I couldn't give a damn about what those rich snobs think of us!" Gwenda boomed as they walked down the red velvet carpeted corridor, a little bit too much of the complementary wine down her throat. "We can do whatever we want, this is our time, isn't it guys? 'Cause we're finally FREEEEEE!" She sang, and Andrew was in near hysterics as he clamped a hand over her mouth to silence her.

"She's had way too much too drink," he giggled, stumbling slightly as he held onto her.

"You don't look that great either sunshine," Victoria laughed, and Andrew simply giggled as he nearly lost his footing again. Victoria sighed and unlocked their door and led the two of them in. As Victoria turned a lamp on, Gwenda and Andrew began to laugh very loudly at the picture of the boat's construction, and Victoria gently led them both to their beds. Gwenda went out like a light as soon as her head touched the pillow, her snores causing Andrew to enter into another fit of giggles.

"Come on you, it's time for you to go to bed," Victoria said as she struggled to pull his heavy body of muscle through their adjoining door and into his own room. Andrew simply giggled and didn't do anything to help, and Victoria grouchily just dropped him onto his bed.

"Why don't you sleep here tonight, I'll be much better company than Giggly Gwenda, wont I?" Andrew slurred, and than began to laugh himself. Victoria felt a flutter of affection around her heart, and for a moment was tempted to say yes. But Andrew looked unwell, and the bed was only single anyway.

"Thanks for the offer, but maybe another time, alright?" Victoria said soothingly. Andrew nodded and climbed under the sheets, still wearing the suit he had worn onto the boat. Victoria watched him for a few moments as he dozed off to sleep, and than pulled the covers up to his neck and patted his head soothingly. With a final look at his handsome sleeping face, Victoria headed back into her own room and took her dress off, having to resort to sleeping in her underwear from the day. She climbed under the covers and turned the lamp off, and tried to fall to sleep.

Unfortunately, Victoria's mind was flooded with rage.

Since leaving Johto behind, Victoria had not been able to stop thinking about the farm, and every time she thought of it, anger pulsed through her. She knew very well that Edmund and the Minder would have punished the other slaves for their actions, using their chance at freedom as an excuse to horribly abuse the others. She could imagine their screams as they whipped until bleeding, and than their cries as they were starved, tortured and made to keep working non stop. This feeling of guilt was torturing here, and Victoria was tempted to go back just to stop them from being hurt.  
><em><br>It's all their fault, _Victoria thought acidly, and the thick faces of Edmund, Victor and Marvin swam before her eyes, accompanied by the laughing but aged face of the Minder. _They have hurt us, tortured us and treated us like filth. If I ever see one of them again, I will make sure they feel the same pain they inflicted on us. _As silent tears streamed down her face and onto the silk pillows, Victoria began to plot ways to get revenge on them, some elaborate, some realistic but still undoable, others plain out hilarious. But these thoughts made Victoria even more determined to get to Lilycove City for the Star Festival. Jirachi would grant their wishes, and she would make everything better…

When Andrew and Gwenda woke up the next morning, the two of them had to fight over the bathroom as they violently threw up over the fine white toilet. Pretending to have rested well after plotting for the entire night, Victoria simply ignored them as she examined a small brochure from her bedside table. She felt very full as well, and Victoria couldn't remember the last time she had eaten such a lovely feast. But she was very glad she hadn't taken any of the wine, as the sounds from the bathroom were not pleasant.

"It says that they are selling dresses and other fine outfits at the shop as well," Victoria explained loudly over the retching. "I think I'll leave you two in peace and use some of the money to get some new clothes, yes?" Gwenda gave a thumbs-up out the door, and Victoria smiled and quickly went off to buy their new clothes. The shop was only two corridors down and was thankfully already open. Wearing one a cosy white dressing gown that came with the room, Victoria walked calmly into the store, not wanting to attract too much attention as she headed for the dresses.

"May I help you madam?" A crisp voice said, and Victoria looked up to see a young white woman with long blonde hair smiling in a rather forced sense at her.

"Oh no, I'm fine," Victoria replied sweetly. "There was a bit of an accident with our luggage, lost some of our clothes," she explained, still annoyed that most of the clothes in the suitcases had been too small or too big for them. The attendant simply nodded and headed back towards the counter, but Victoria could feel her eyes on the back of her head as she selected the cheapest, plainest pink sundresses for her and Gwenda, and than some crisp white shirts and brown shorts for Andrew. The way the woman was glaring at Victoria was rather intimidating, and she couldn't help but wonder what she had done to earn such nasty looks: was browsing through the underwear section somehow insulting to the woman?

"Just these thanks," Victoria said after only five minutes, passing the clothes over, which now contained some large sunhats and several changes of underwear. The cruise ship thankfully didn't charge their customers very much money, and Victoria was glad to still have a bit of their stolen fortune left as the attendant pushed the clothes back at her at the end of the transaction.

"You may leave now," the woman said quickly, and Victoria was taken aback at the rude way she was being treated.

"Thanks," Victoria said in a hiss like voice, and the woman's eyes narrowed viciously as Victoria turned and marched out of the store. All the way back to her room Victoria tried to work out what she had down to offend the woman, and remembered getting nasty looks from people on the deck the previous day. Did these people somehow know Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew were ex-slaves? Were they going to be judged for the horrific lives they had been forced to live? Victoria tried to push these negative thoughts away, but they lingered in the back of her mind as she pushed their door open.

"Thank god, I've got sick all down my dress!" Gwenda cried as soon as Victoria walked in and grabbed one of the dresses and some underwear. As she ran into the bathroom, Andrew emerged, looking rather pale and very sick.

"I'm going have to force my breakfast down," he said with a weak smile. "Thanks for getting us these, it's a real help."

"No problem," Victoria said with a beam, and watched him with admiration as he took his clothes into the next room, half wishing he would get changed in her view. Giggling to herself at the idea, Victoria new changes of underwear on and got her new dress ready. Once they all looked decent, marks of drunkenness and illness disguised by crisp new clothing, the three quickly headed down the elegant corridor and down towards the dining room, ready for another delicious breakfast.

"I sure hope there's bacon, I loved to smell it when the Parrish's had it," Victoria said as her stomach gave a loud rumble.

"Sounds like your very desperate for it," Gwenda laughed, and the two girls laughed loudly down the corridor, still in hysterics as they entered the room.

"Calm down you two, we're getting looks," Andrew warned, though he was trying not to laugh either as they moved towards an empty table. Victoria glanced around at the faces watching them, and her laughter quickly died as she was stared down by the people onboard. There was not a single happy face staring back at them, and Victoria felt a chill go down her back as she realised not a single black face was amongst the pallet of white either. The people were all wearing looks similar to that of the shop attendant, and Victoria couldn't help but feel disgusting, almost sick as they walked, wondering what she had done wrong.

"I feel like these people know something about us," Victoria whispered as they sat down at a table only a few feet away from the doors. The deckt hey had stood on when they arrived was beautifully polished and the wooden floorboards were shining in the early morning sun. It was such a beautiful view, but Victoria still felt horrible as she saw more nasty looks directed at them.

"Your right, they are all staring at us," Gwenda huffed. "They should paint a picture, it'll last longer," and she pulled a face at the elderly couple nearest them. They looked highly offended and looked down at their plates, muttering too each other.

"Don't antagonise them," Andrew said softly, and Gwenda simply stuck her nose in the air and imitated how the elderly lady was cutting up her bacon. Victoria and Andrew both laughed, but even as she looked down at the menu, Victoria could feel the eyes on the back of their heads, hear the nasty whispers that were coming her way.

"I just don't want you to cause a scene," Andrew explained as he signalled for a waiter, however they all seemed to avert their eyes as his hand went up. "I want to just enjoy these days on the ship before I get thrown into whatever deranged plans you two have planned for me in Hoenn! I've had a hard past few years, and frankly I just want some peace and quiet!"

"That's fair enough, I guess," Gwenda replied with a forced sigh, and than reached out and pinched Andrew's cheek. "Don't worry darling, I'm sure nothing else is going to go wrong." Andrew pulled a face back at her, and Victoria laughed and stared back out through the doors. A cool breeze was coming in that left Victoria feeling rather relaxed, and she then noticed a large shadow moving across. For a moment Victoria thought it was a cloud, their perfect sunny day about to be ruined by a storm. But the shadow wasn't moving away: it was getting larger, coming closer to the dock at an alarming rate. She glanced out of the doors and gasped, making the others jump.

"Something's falling from the sky!" She screamed. Andrew and Gwenda leapt up, but they were shoved against the table as waiters and fellow passengers shoved past them, all racing to see what was falling.

"Rude!" Gwenda growled, and she clambered onto their table in order to see over the heads. Victoria and Andrew quickly copied, getting to their feet as something silver descended past their eyes, crashing into the deck with a ringing sound and setting off a chorus of gasps.

"Skaaar… Skaaaar… Skaaar!" The injured body of a Skarmory lay before the passengers, letting off it's sad cry as many people rushed forwards to help it. Victoria was stunned as well for the injured bird, but as she stared towards it, she noticed it's eyes were glancing towards her. The beady black eyes were alive with a malice and wickedness that didn't match the flying type's desperate cry.

"That thing is staring at me," Victoria mumbled to the others, and than noticed something else: a bundle of black entangled on its back, now being rescued by several waiters. "What's that on its back? It looks like a... person…" Victoria said, and Andrew and Gwenda craned their neck, trying to see what it was. The person was muttering to all the people around them, their silver hair reflected in the sunlight. The person turned their head to face the rest of the crowd, a wide smile upon their face.

In an instant, Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew were off their table, sprinting across the dining room. They didn't pause, they didn't look back, they didn't even speak to each other. Fear was running through their blood now, and it seemed to give them the extra adrenaline rush needed to get out of their as fast as possible. Victoria's mind was clouded and spinning, unable to comprehend what had happened, and she dropped her key to their room as her entire body began to shake. But she quickly grabbed it and unlocked the door, collapsing onto her bed as soon as she got in. Out of breath, in fear and completely surprised, she glanced at the other two to see they had similar reactions on their face, what they had just seen playing through their minds.

The Minder was now onboard the _Johto Jewel_.


	13. Chapter Eleven: Hidden

**Chapter Eleven: Hidden**

"We can't leave our rooms again… we just can't…"

Gwenda was pacing the room looking very intense, though whilst she thought she was contributing ideas, Victoria and Andrew had already come to this agreement. Andrew was leaning against the wall, simply nodding, in so much shock he couldn't think of anything to say. Victoria was lying on her bed clutching Millicent's empty Heavy Ball, the Miltank lying besides her in silence as she understood how serious the others were. The Minder's appearance had ruined what they thought would be a perfect chance to get back into the outside world and prepare themselves for their journey, but now they would be stuck inside, forced to avoid him for the remainder of their journey.

"There's only a few hours left on the boat, right?" Gwenda said in a high pitched voice that she thought was encouraging. "We can just stay here and order some food, maybe work out what we're going to do when we get off the boat, and then go and blend in with the crowd getting off when we dock. It'll be dark, so we could probably find a place to hide and then set off in the morning."

"Sounds reasonable," Andrew said, but he sighed and sunk onto the beautiful carpet. Their rooms seemed dark and hideous now, as if the ship had just become plagued. The enjoyment had been sucked out, and they had been looking forward to going back to the pool, eating nice food, lounging under the beautiful sun.

"I just want to know how he found us," Andrew sighed. "He did it so quickly… maybe they've been following us from the start. Like spy Pokemon… that Skarmory could have been stalking us!" Gwenda gasped dramatically and rushed towards their bags.

"He could know we're in this room! People may have spoken about us! We need to move now," and she grabbed her clothes from the previous night and flung them in. But as she lunged for Victoria's clothes, her friend grabbed them, sitting upright for the first time in about ten minutes.

"We're staying here," Victoria said seriously. "The Minder isn't going to find us. Even if he does, there isn't anything he can do to us here. We have Millicent to protect us, and there is three of us, isn't there? He doesn't have the Parrish's to back him up anymore."

"Good point," Andrew said with a wide smile, getting up off the floor. Victoria stared at him and their eyes met, and for a few moments they simply stared at each other, both smiling. Victoria could definitely feel something between them, and almost forgot about the situation, simply glad that the two were there, together….

"Miltank Mil!" The two snapped out of their staring as Millicent stood, coughing grumpily. She pointed towards her stomach which let out a distinct grumble. Victoria had completely forgotten about feeding her, and knew she was use to getting her hay updated several times a day.

"I think we will have to risk going out a few times, to get supplies and stuff," Victoria said, leaping off her bed. "I'll go out now and get Millicent some food: we can't have a hungry Pokemon that is our only protector, right?" Gwenda moved asides as Victoria rummaged through the bag, pulling out the hedge clippers and her hand mirror. "I'll look around and see if the Minder is coming around bends so he can't surprise me, and I have the hedge clippers just in case!"

"Victoria, you can't go out there!" Gwenda whimpered. Her lips were trembling and her eyes were watering up, and Victoria couldn't help get upset as well, instantly flinging her arms around her best friend before she could cry.

"Don't worry, the Minder won't be able to stop me!" She said soothingly, but Gwenda was still beginning to sob up. Victoria was reminded of escaping from the farm just over twenty four hours ago, and remembered Gwenda crying before they did so. The two were close friends, and she really didn't want something to happen to her, and vice versa.

"Just… just… just be careful," Gwenda sniffed, wiping her eyes, and Millicent passed a handkerchief over for her to blow her nose.

"I promise," Victoria smiled, and walked off, slipping the hedge clippers into a pocket of her dress along with some of their money. At the door Victoria paused, staring towards Andrew with a rather longing look. He gave her an encouraging smile and went to pat her on the shoulder, but paused, seeming a bit nervous, and backed away slightly.

"See you all soon," Victoria said rather sadly and walked out into the corridor. It was empty, but she still walked cautiously down the carpeted hallway, listening for any sign of movement. The thoughts she had had the previous night were rushing through her body with every pump of her body. If the Minder showed up and tried to attack her, there was no doubt in her mind that Victoria would raise the hedge clippers up and stab him. She heard something move, and Victoria gripped the clippers, ready to strike…

"I do say that was an awful kafuffle on the deck, wouldn't you agree?" An elderly women said, and Victoria slinked back into her hallway. The couple who had eaten near them was walking past, the husband shaking his heads.

"Awful indeed. I do wonder if that man was just trying to sneak onboard the ship," he said, and his wife made a sound in agreement. "I'm just glad management has taken him away to sort things out so we could finish our meals in peace!" The wife made the agreeing noise again before the couple disappeared. Smiling, Victoria let go of the clippers and rushed off in the opposite direction to the couple, back towards the dining room. Whilst she was glad she could get Millicent some food quickly, Victoria was also glad she didn't have to face the Minder just yet. No matter what she told herself, committing murder seemed like such an evil thing to do, especially on such a nice boat.

For the rest of the day, Victoria and Andrew took turns sneaking around. Gwenda was too afraid about going by herself, so she stayed behind and ran around with Millicent, keeping the hyperactive Miltank entertained. Andrew went to buy some new clothes as Victoria didn't want to go back there after how rude the sales woman had been, leaving her to go and wander around and try to find information. She found some gossiping cleaning ladies, the only other black people Victoria had seen on the ship asides from her and Gwenda, and eavesdropped to their conversation. Apparently the Minder was allowed to wander around the decks, but wasn't allowed to go into any of the rooms and would have to pay for a ticket when they got to Slateport. Victoria was disappointed that he wasn't being locked up, and wondered what tale he had spun.

The _Johto Jewel _was quickly nearing Slateport, going far ahead of the predicted schedule. They had entered Hoenn Waters as the sun began to set, giving the passengers spectacular views of golden and orange skies being reflected in the waters below. The captain made an announcement saying that they would arrive in Slateport around two hours, arriving a few hours earlier than expected. The guests had retreated inside to pack their bags before heading down to the dining hall, ready for their last meal before the ship arrived.

There weren't any windows in the rooms though, so Victoria, Andrew and Gwenda simply lay on their beds, waiting for their ordered dinner to arrive. They were bored and restless, their rooms very confined now that there was no chance of leaving them. Victoria was chopping at some fabric she had found with the hedge clippers, sighing loudly, and trying not to notice how Andrew was staring at her from besides the door. He was rolling a ball of silk sheets towards Millicent, who was clearly enjoying being played with much more than the people playing with her were. Gwenda was examining herself in the hand mirror, seeing how her hair looked in different ways. The three of them were rather depressed about having their fun cut short, and though they had gotten the map of Hoenn out, they hadn't had the enthusiasm or concentration to make a plan, the Minder still on their minds.

A knock at the door changed the mood. All three of them leapt up, Victoria instinctively raising the hedge clippers. There was a pause, and they all exchanged looks, wondering if it was The Minder trying to get through the door.

"Did someone order some food?" A voice asked. The three sighed and Andrew moved and unlocked the door, revealing one of the black maids with a white clothed trolley. "I thought I had the wrong room, almost everyone is down at the dining room!" She chuckled, and pushed the trolley in. A silver platter was on top, and she raised it onto a small table in the corner of the room. A succulent Grumpig had been cooked to a wonderful brown, and was surrounded by steaming vegetables and a basket of bread.

"Delicious!" Andrew boomed, and he grabbed his cutlery and cut a piece of the Grumpig off and began to chew it, clearly enjoying the taste.

"Thank you for this," Victoria said, the hedge clippers tucked inside her dress again. She paused over a few dollars of thanks, but the maid shook her head.

"It is kind of you to offer, but I don't take tips from my own people," she said with a smile. "You keep the money, buy yourself something nice in Hoenn."

"I heard they have markets there, is that true?" Gwenda asked.

"Oh yes, their markets are just wonderful!" The maid explained, moving away from the door. She raised her arm and showed Gwenda a blue bracelet she had brought, explaining about the kind man who ran the stall. Victoria moved over to examine it, but a figure moving past their open door caught her. The person was moving rather briskly, but Victoria still caught the crisp white shirt there were wearing, the smart black pants, and caught something thin and black in their hands.

Without thinking, Victoria moved forwards. Forgetting that the maid was there she pulled the hedge clippers out, making Millicent look up from the Pokemon food Victoria had gotten earlier. Andrew turned away from the pig as Victoria walked out the door, ignoring a gasp from the maid and marching down the corridor. The Minder was just ahead of her, walking at a familiar fast pace. The clippers were raised threateningly, and Victoria was ready to strike with them if necessary. She didn't care about what the consequences were anymore, but her blood was boiling, and she had to do it now, there wouldn't be another chance. Revenge would be hers….

"Victoria, what are you doing?"

Victoria froze as an arm grasped hers. The person in front of her turned around and she saw the face was that of another elderly man, but it was a much healthier looking face that was currently in shock. He was trying to put his tie around his neck, and there was a distinct lack of a cane in his heads.

"Oh my… I'm so sorry sir!" Victoria gasped as Andrew lowered her arm for her. The man simply nodded and continued on his way, mumbling under his breath. Victoria was horrified at what she had just done, and her body began to shake.

"Victoria, what's wrong?" Andrew asked. "Why did you chase after him?" Victoria turned to face him, his face still handsome as he looked at her in worry. The maid was taking the empty trolley out of their room, Gwenda rashly making up a story before she reported them. Victoria didn't know what to say, her mind was getting clouded. But she couldn't stop as a sob broke through, and then tears began to stream, and in seconds she had turned and was running down the corridor.

"Stay there with Millicent!" Andrew shouted, and as Victoria rounded a corner, she could hear his feet thumping after her. Desperate to get away, Victoria saw a door ahead was ajar and pushed it open, appearing on metal staircase. It was spiralling down and Victoria ran down it, her bare feet hurting on the metal. Andrew's feet were bigger and were causing a bigger clang, but Victoria had no desire to stop, her tears falling quickly now and impairing her vision. Her feet found relief as they moved onto a flatter, more comfortable metal, but the room she had entered into was stifling hot. Victoria came to a stop as she wiped her eyes, looking around at where they were.

It appeared she had entered the ships engine room. The ceiling and walls and even a large part of the floor was covered with pipes upon pipes, leading to what and from what Victoria didn't know. The room stretched on past where Victoria could see, but in the immediate area she was near two gigantic metal boxes, fires roaring inside of them. Stacks of coal were nearby, crowding up what was left of the space, and Victoria felt like lying on top of them, feeling like she deserved the pain.

"Victoria!" Andrew appeared at the bottom of the staircase, and Victoria turned to flee but was too slow: in three powerful strides Andrew was besides her, grabbing her arms to stop her fleeing, the hedge clippers falling onto the dirty coal.

"Victoria, what was that about?" He asked. His voice wasn't angry but Victoria felt guilty anyway and she collapsed into new found tears, clutching Andrew in a desperate manner.

"I wanted to kill that person," she wailed. "I thought he was the Minder and I was about to kill him. I'm a horrible person, aren't I?"

"That's not true Victoria, that's not –"

"Yes it is! Since we got on this boat my mind's been filled with nothing but revenge plans. I want to kill the Minder, I want to kill Edmund and his sons, and frankly I wouldn't mind giving a Judith a good stay in hospital! They are all such horrible people for what they did to us," Victoria cried, "but am I just as bad? I could have killed that innocent man simply because he looked like the Minder in my head, and I… I… I…" but Victoria couldn't continue her sentence, and she and Andrew sunk to the floor, her head buried into his chest.

"Victoria, you are not a horrible person!" Andrew said in a soothing but serious voice. "I want to kill them as well and I wouldn't be this upset about it! They are horrible pieces of scum that enslaved us for no reason other than saving them a few bucks on labour. If those hedge clippers had been in my hands, I probably would have fought against the grip and stabbed that guy anyway." Victoria looked up into Andrew's eyes, her tears beginning to lessen as he smiled his handsome smile, stroking her hair with one hand. "You are a wonderful person because you stopped and felt guilty! That was an amazing thing to do, which is understandable for such an amazing person." Victoria smiled back at him, and she suddenly felt something in her chest. She gazed up at Andrew, her mind becoming confused on something else. Maybe it was the heat of the room, maybe it was his kind words or what had just happened in the corridor, or maybe because Victoria just damn well felt like it, but she raised her head and kissed him.

Fireworks seemed to explode between the two in that one moment. Victoria had never felt such a strong feeling in all her life, and her lips were practically tingling as the two kissed. The moment turned into several, and than the two remained embraced for over a minute before they finally broke apart, their eyes meeting, their chests heaving as they gasped for air. Victoria had felt something between them for some time, a connection that had increased since they got on the boat, and she was glad it wasn't one sided.

"I love you," she said breathlessly, clutching his hands in her own. She half expected him to laugh or insult her, but Andrew's smile was warm but timid, his eyes wild and excited.

"I love you too," he whispered, and the two kissed again. Not caring where they were, forgetting about their dinner and Gwenda back in their room, the two collapsed backwards onto the floor. They continued to kiss, Victoria undoing the buttons as Andrew lay on top, his hands running through her hair. The fires roared unattended in their boxes, their flames dancing as wildly as the passion between the two. And in the silence, the orange fires their only witness, Victoria and Andrew stayed there, embracing, kissing, their love being exchanged for the first time.


	14. Chapter Twelve: Confrontation

**Chapter Twelve: Confrontation**

_Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock_

Time went on, and Gwenda found herself getting tenser and tenser by the second. It was if the clock was counting down to something dark and unenjoyable, rather than the end of the short but magnificent voyage. Gwenda stared at the simple clock anxiously, wondering what was taking Victoria and Andrew so long, and hoping they'd arrive back before Gwenda was left alone at the docks.

Gwenda needed Victoria, she had known this for some time. There was no way she could have survived Miltank Meadows if it wasn't for Victoria's companionship and humour. Gwenda wasn't stupid but she wasn't intelligent either, and could easily lose her head when things went bad. Escaping would never have happened, and Gwenda couldn't survive in Hoenn without her friend to guide her through. A tear began to stream as Gwenda wondered where Victoria and Andrew were, and hoping nothing had happened.

"Miltank Mil Mil," Millicent moaned, clattering an empty plate against Gwenda's pacing legs. The Miltank had eaten the majority of the food, leaving only a few scraps of the Grumpig and some of the bread. Gwenda looked down at her and managed to laugh, wiping the tear away before she got too worked up.

"Are you still hungry?" She chuckled. "Or are your bored? Do you want to play something?"

"MIL!" Millicent boomed, patting her udder sleepily, and flopped back onto the floor. Gwenda laughed and sat down on her bed, allowing her stress to lessen as she grabbed her plate of cold meat and tore a strip.

"This is good, I can see why you ate it all!" Gwenda laughed through a full mouth, and Millicent managed a smile. Before her parents died, Gwenda had had several Pokemon that lived in her backyard, and was quite good at playing with them. That was, until they had all gone… all of them…  
><em><br>No, stop it! _Gwenda shouted at herself in her mind, ignoring the mental pictures forming and stopping herself from crying again. She had more of the Grumpig and laughed as Millicent eyed it eagerly.  
><em><br>Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock_

A knock sounded at the door.

Gwenda leapt up excitedly, her plate crashing to the floor, Millicent grabbing the meat before it had landed. In Gwenda's mind, only Victoria and Andrew were there, calmed down and ready to have their food. Beaming, Gwenda rushed over and pulled the door open, ready to greet them.

"Fina –" Gwenda began, but than she froze, realising who was actually there.

The Minder smiled back at her, pushing his way into the room.

"Finally indeed!" The slave master said, his eyes alive with a sense of excitement Gwenda had only seen when he was wiping slaves close to death. Her world came crashing down, and Gwenda found herself slip to the floor in shock, close to fainting. They had escaped… how had he found them… how?

"Lovely room," The Minder said, smiling at Millicent, who had frozen with her food dripping out of her mouth, "but than again, it is a lovely ship. I'm surprised they let two black girls on board, but they must have a _very_ slack system." The Minder paused and turned back around to face Gwenda, his smile getting wider and wider as he reached for his whip, the familiar black leather stained with blood from its last brutal beatings.

"But, of course, this is the last time you'll be enjoying this lifestyle," he said, his words like knives through Gwenda's body. "I am here to escort you and your foul little friends back to the farm. I will than string your bodies up to a tree, and I will whip your bodies until your skin falls off. Mr Parrish will surely have a few words to say – he is _veeeery_ annoyed, after all," The Minder hissed. "Once we have made our peace, I will raise my shotgun up, and I will blow each one of your heads off." Gwenda had tried to stop herself, but tears were beginning to stream, a gut wrenching feeling swelling up in her stomach. They thought they had escaped from this, but now their freedom had been snatched away, destroyed before they could fully enjoy it.

"You're a sick little monster!" She screamed up at him, and The Minder simply laughed, unfolding his whip and raising it up.

"Your words can never hurt me, my dear, but trust me, you shall pay for them," he laughed, and raised the whip up. Gwenda raised her arms in defence, knowing it was useless, and wondering where Victoria and Andrew where, why they weren't here to help protect her…

_Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock_

"TAAAAANK!"

In Gwenda's fear, she hadn't noticed that Millicent had scuttled over to the corner, and neither had The Minder in his twisted pleasure at trapping her. Both their heads turned as the food trolley was sent flying, crashing straight into The Minder's unguarded body and sending him sprawling backwards over the bed. Gwenda simply gasped, a tinge of happiness and surprise mixing into the horror and shock settling into her body. As plates crashed loudly down onto The Minder, Millicent rushed forwards and grabbed the suitcase with all of their possessions in.

"Tank Mil Mil Tank Miltank!" She cried and picked Gwenda up single handedly, half dragging her down the hallway as she began to sprint. Gwenda was stunned by her strength and agility, but was now beginning to worry about finding Victoria and Andrew. They would need to be alerted about The Minder before he found them, alone and unarmed, and Gwenda needed them in order to plan their escape.

"We aren't splitting up, alright?" Gwenda told Millicent, and the Miltank nodded as she ran between two middle aged woman who screamed in shock. "Good, I don't want to get stuck alone when he gets back up!" The halls were empty, but noise was coming from every door they passed. The passengers were getting ready to depart the boat, oblivious to the psychotic maniac on board with them, or the plight of the trio they had been so unnecessarily rude to.

"Where do you think they went?" Gwenda asked, doing her best to try and keep her cool. She noticed her voice crack though, and realised it was going to be harder than she thought. Gwenda began looking around for possible clues in the hallway to where they might have gone, and didn't realise something white flashed at the very end of the corridor. But Millicent came to a halt, staring curiously at the ajar doors a few feet away.

"Millicent, why have you stopped?" Gwenda asked absently, wondering if Victoria could have gone towards the dining hall.

"MIL!" Millicent squealed in reply, and Gwenda quickly looked around: The Minder was walking through the doors, his wide smile replaced with a tight scowl, a Kadabra walking alongside him.

"Teleporting onto the ship may seem like more sense," the aging man hissed viciously, making Gwenda squirm, "but crash landing got me sympathy, and sympathy got my questions answered." The Minder looked furious, and was raising his whip up, ready to smash it down against their skin.

"RUN, NOW!" Gwenda screamed hysterically, and Millicent quickly burst through the nearest door, the whip cracking the carpet behind them. The Miltank began running down a sweltering staircase, the heat rising up unbearable, the clang of her large body on the metal sure to attract attention. Gwenda and the suitcase bounced in her arms as they began to turn, putting more distance between themselves and The Minder, but knew they couldn't outrun him and his Kadabra forever.

Gwenda just hoped she could find a good place to hide.

The fire in their smoke boxes roared vigorously, the orange light it cast both hot and pleasant. Victoria and Andrew lay on their bare backs, the glow glistening of their sweat covered skin. Both of them were breathing deeply, and Victoria watched as Andrew's fit chest heaved up and down with each breath he took, her stomach swooning as she thought about the past few minutes.

It had been… one of the most glorious sensations of Victoria's life. She lay there on the hard and hot floor, clutching her dress over her otherwise bare breast, breathing just as deeply as Andrew and soaking up the feeling rushing through her body. It felt as if a huge burden had suddenly been lifted off her body, a large amount of stress and depression gone, replaced by an amazing feeling of wonderment and happiness. And Victoria was both amazed and glad that she had done it with Andrew. She'd always fancied him from afar, but her heart raced to know that he felt the same way. Their heads glanced towards each other, and Victoria gazed into his blue eyes, a smile spreading across her face.

"That was…," Andrew whispered, but he couldn't find the right word, and Victoria simply giggled and leaned forwards, kissing him warmly on his lips, enjoying the feeling it caused. Andrew smiled back, and Victoria rested her hands against her bare chest, words forming in her mind, but none of them the right ones to fully express how she felt right now. Andrew began to open his mouth, and Victoria just hoped he had the right words to sum things up for her.

"Can you here something?" He whispered, the happiness creeping off his face. Victoria was rather stunned and a little disappointed, but she could also hear a very loud metallic noise coming from the staircase. She yelped at the noise, realising someone must be coming downstairs, and pulled her dress back over her sweating body. Andrew slipped his trousers back and quickly did his shirt back up, neither of them wanting to be caught in the flesh.

"RUN MILLICENT, RUN!" Victoria and Andrew exchanged shocked looks as Millicent suddenly ran in, Gwenda and the suitcase in her arms. Gwenda turned around as Millicent came to a shock halt, and her eyes bulged as well. "There you are! What are you two doing down here… where is here anyway?" Gwenda asked, getting down from Millicent's shoulder with a loud thud.

"Um…." Victoria said, not sure what to say in response.

"Victoria was just a bit shaken up. I took her down here to comfort her, away from any prying eyes," Andrew explained quickly, wiping the sweat off his face with his sleeve. Victoria nodded along with a forced smile, hoping Gwenda would buy it. Thankfully, her best friend seemed rather distracted, looking back at the staircase nervously.

"Why do you have the suitcase with you, is it time to go?" Victoria asked, and Gwenda shook her head, her eyes fill of fright.

"The Minder found me! I thought it was you two and I opened the door. Millicent managed to get rid of him, but he has a Kadabra, you know, those gold things that teleport?" Victoria and Andrew both gasped, their stomachs rearing up with the same feelings of shock and confusion Gwenda had felt.

"We have to get out of here, now!" Victoria wailed, and the other three nodded, heading for the doorway as fast as possible. They didn't know how they'd escape, they just knew they had to get off the ship now.

"I wouldn't move if I was you!" A familiar voice growled from behind. Unwillingly, Victoria and Gwenda turned back around in shock. The Minder was walking out from the maze of pipes and tubes behind them, a scowl across his face and his Kadabra by his side. "If you move, Kadabra here will Teleport and grab you, and then throw you into the fire." Andrew froze, his feet about to touch the steps, and sighed in defeat. Victoria and Gwenda found themselves clasping each others hands in worry, watching as The Minder nodded and took a step forwards.

"Good. I would rather murder you with my bare hands, but I will throw you in if you provoke me!" He hissed. He was beginning to pace around, a task made difficult by his limp. He seemed to be deep in thought, staring between the two raging fires on either side of him. "You two weren't that tricky to track down, just so you know. I followed the train's path down to the docks, and found the talk of the town had been two black girls fleeing onto a ship with a white boy. I was able to sweet talk a lovely receptionist until giving me the ships details, and I very quickly flew out to meet you." The three all exchanged looks of horror: how had they been so easy to find?

"What's wrong with me being with them?" Andrew growled. "How is that an issue to anyone?" The Minder paused and turned to face him, his smile one of surprise and laughter rather than anger. He quickly began to laugh, leaning on his cane to hold himself up as the sickly sound echoed around them.

"Seriously… you actually asked me that… you three are fools! If I hadn't appeared, you wouldn't have lasted five minutes in Hoenn anyway!" The Minder snorted, and his Kadabra gave a deep but slow laugh to join in with his master. The four were left very confused by the laughter, too stunned to move and knowing it would snap him out of it if they did so. They were helpless, unable to do anything at the moment. The Minder was beginning to calm down, and he quickly straightened up, wiping a tear of joy away from his aging face.

"I needed that, thank you. Edmund would be most amused when I tell him of that. But, of course, you can always tell him yourself," The Minder said, smiling wickedly, and he clicked his fingers. Kadabra took a step forwards, raising his spoon up, eyes beginning to glow pink. Victoria pulled Gwenda and Andrew into a quick hug, tears beginning to form from both woman's eyes. As they waited for the first, there was a loud thud besides them.

"MIL!" Millicent was walking forwards, having dropped the suitcase behind her. She was beginning to glow white, and walked forwards into Kadabra's line of vision.

"Get out of the way!" The Minder snapped, reaching for his whip. Millicent simply ignored him, the white light brightening as Kadabra tried to force her out of the way. Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew watched in amazement at her defiance, the light beginning to take up the enclosed area. Something glinted out of the corner of Victoria's eyes, and she turned around to see the hedge clippers lying atop of the large pile of coal. It was the only other weapon they had, and Victoria had to keep it.

"STOP!" Andrew shouted, but Victoria had already run forwards, leaping past The Minder and grabbing the clippers. The slave minder turned around, looking furious as he raised the whip up. With the clippers in her hands though, Victoria felt a sense of courage rise up in her, and could feel the anger she'd left behind rise up again.

"ROT IN HELL!" She roared up at The Minder, and she leapt up, ready to jab it down. The Minder's eyes bugled, the whip falling loosely at his hands, and Victoria felt god like as she prepared to stab…

Than Millicent released her Bide.

The explosion was as bright as it had been back when they escaped. Blinding white light filled the entire capacity, making the flames looked dull in comparison. Screams and shouts echoed around as the beam smashed through pipes and one of the boilers, tearing the bottom of the ship apart. Victoria was blasted backwards by the shock wave, the coal flying everywhere. Her head hit the side with a painful shudder, and Victoria felt her body sliding down…

The Bide stopped as suddenly as it began, and Gwenda and Andrew were left to evaluate the damage. Pipes had been blasted apart, whole systems that made up the ship fail. A powerful fire was spreading from the collapsed firebox, and it was spreading towards the mound of coal now scattered around. Water and gas was emitting from everywhere, mingling with the smoke caused. The men in charge of manning the intricate part of the ship had been sleeping a few rows away, and were now screaming and shouting at each other, unaware of the slaves onboard.

"Millicent… that was…. that was…," Gwenda tried to say something, but nothing could describe what they'd seen. Millicent simply nodded at her, glancing at the spot Kadabra had been at moments before. Andrew looked over towards Victoria and saw her eyes were shut, her body trapped by the flames.

"Grab the suitcase, we need to leave, now!" Andrew shouted, and raced over the hot coal. His feet hurt and his eys were still sore from the light, but Andrew couldn't leave Victoria behind, not after what had just happened between them. She was murmuring as he picked her up, pocketing the hedge clippers and putting her over his shoulder. Gwenda and Millicent were moving up the stairs, and Andrew followed after, his eyes burning more from the smoke filling the area. The group ran up the staircase, the metal already beginning to burn their soles, the smoke ad noise chasing after them.

"We have to jump overboard!" Andrew screamed.

"ARE YOU CRAZY!" Gwenda shouted back at the top of the staircase. "Going in the pool was the most swimming I've down for years! We can't survive out in the ocean!"

"If we don't jump off than we'll die!" Andrew said as he followed Millicent back out into the hallway, the Miltank clutching their suitcase. People had their doors open, chattering away as they readied to dock in Hoenn, unaware of the killer below. "This whole ship is probably going to explode any second judging by that fire!" Gwenda yelped, and she quickly sped up to join them. There were doors open only metres away, leading out to the decks high above the ocean surface. Gwenda was petrified about The Minder being there, but was now more frightened about the destruction happening beneath their feet. None of the other happy passengers had any idea of the raging fire, the destroyed systems, the fact the boat might not make it into port. The fear fuelled her adrenaline, and Gwenda shut her eyes as she ran past the last open door, ready to jump. The room they passed had a loud clock, ticking away, and Gwenda was reminded of her thoughts of a countdown, only a few minutes before.

_Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock, tick tock_

Their feet barely touched the wood of the deck before Andrew, Millicent and finally Gwenda leapt over the low railing. Their bodies sailed in the air for a few seconds, a scream rising up in Gwenda's throat as she opened her eyes, staring down at the wide expanse of dark ocean that would come up to meet them.

Than the _Johto Jewel _exploded.


	15. Chapter Thirteen: Water

**Chapter Thirteen: Water**

For the passengers onboard, the explosion was unexpected.

They had all been mingling around in their rooms, reflecting on their short but enjoyable cruise. The dining had been excellent, the views had been spectacular, and the slight amounts of drama had been enough to give them things to gossip about when they made it back to their social circles. The rooms had been magnificently made, some of them better than the guests own rooms. It was one of those journeys you hoped never ended, but the passengers didn't mind. They were looking forward to either returning home to Hoenn or enjoying the sights the new region had to offer. They had made new friends with the other guests, and it had been a purely wonderful cruise.

For the workers down below, the explosion was unwanted.

As the _Johto Jewel _had been nearing Slateport City, the men that controlled the ship below the decks had decided to slow their work down, seeing as they were so close to their destination. The men had all gone and had a little rest behind the pipes, meant to last only a few minutes, but quickly turned into half an hour in the tricky way time and sleep flies by. As they rested, Victoria and Andrew entered, and they remained fast asleep. They were asleep when Gwenda and Millicent arrived, and were asleep when Kadabra teleported The Minder down. The ship was beginning to slow, and the workers were beginning to awake, shocked at the amount of time spent below, and getting ready to get the ship going for its last few minutes.

The Bide changed everything.

Suddenly, all of the men were awake and they were left gobsmacked: pipes had been torn apart, the coal had been scattered, fires were starting up. The hull of the ship had gone from peace and quiet to destruction in only a few seconds, and the workers had no idea what to do. They simply stood there in shock, watching as more pipes exploded, the gas line dangerously close to the flames, but they had no training in what to do.

"We have to call the Captain!" One of the younger men shouted desperately. The older men nodded, and they all rushed towards their work room, not noticing as Andrew, Gwenda and Millicent departed up the stairs. A special phone was there in case of emergencies, and the youngest man quickly pulled it off its hook, smoke already rising up and unfortunate sounding clanks echoing around.

"Emergency, emergency! There is a fire in the hull, we need to evacuate, now!" He shouted, his co-workers staring hopelessly at the raging fire behind him, thoughts of loved ones and possible options rushing through their heads.

Unfortunately, they were too late to act.

The explosion was a sight to see across most of Hoenn.

One by one the gas pipes began to explode, setting off a chain reaction of explosions. The workers could only watch for a few seconds as orange fists rose up throughout the engine room, coming together in a gigantic shock wave of energy. But the men had been standing too close to another pipe, and it wasn't long before there were incinerated by the exploding gas only a few feet away. The metal hull was pushed beyond capacity as the explosions gathered together, and quickly the fists burst through to the other side.

The passengers above were left shocked as the _Johto Jewel _began to shake and shudder. Those who were on the decks watched in amazement as the explosions burst through the hull, sending sharp metal flying across into the ocean and sending them scrambling for the hallways. Unfortunately, the explosions had easily blasted through the lower floor of the ship. Those who'd been in their rooms found their floors being destroyed beneath their feet, the explosions tearing them apart before they could notice it, their holidays ending before even knew it. Within only a few seconds, half of the people onboard had been killed.

In Slateport, dock workers could only watch in horror as the orange, red and yellow of the flames lit the dark sky and waters up, the explosions tearing through the entire hull. The full force of the combined explosions had turned the hull into scrap metal, and the cruise ship was now cracking down the middle. The workers could only gasp as the ship began to sink, the flames disappearing as _Johto Jewel's _last voyage was cut to an unfortunate and saddening finish.  
>For Andrew, Gwenda and Millicent, it was yet another blow to what should have been a smooth escape.<p>

They had just jumped over the edge, Andrew clasping to Victoria, Millicent clutching the suitcase tightly. Falling much faster than the others, Millicent wrapped her tail around Gwenda and grabbed onto Andrew, pulling her three human companions close to her chest and placing the suitcase over them. Gwenda was screaming loudly, and Andrew was wondering if they would be able to escape in time before the ship exploded. They could see the water rising up towards them, ready to greet them as just another cold, wet friend, the _Jewel's _gentle movements through the water enough to send safe ripples for them.

Than there was the explosion.

Gwenda screamed louder than ever, but even Andrew and Millicent couldn't hear her over the explosion. Intense heat washed over their bodies, sending the strange group spiralling across the sky. Millicent did her best to hold them all together, but the heat was too strong, and metal was smashing into her body. The extra push from the explosion was enough to send them possibly a kilometre away from the ship, they couldn't be sure, but they did know they were about to crash into the water at an alarming speed.

"MILLLLLL!" Millicent yelled, tensing up, not sure if she would be able to withstand the pressure. Gwenda was still screaming, and even Andrew tensed up, clutching Victoria tightly as they came soaring down, striking the water.

Though the explosion had sent ripples through the liquid darkness that was the ocean, the force as the group hit was still enough to ache their bodies and send them bursting apart. Gwenda's scream turned to a gurgle as she began to sink rapidly, and Andrew desperately tried to hold onto Victoria, but knew it would be hard.

The sea was literally black, no light managing to break beneath the surface. Yet they all knew the water was there, they could feel it seeping through their clothing, moving against their skin, pressing against their bodies. Noises sounded all around in a strange, echoing manner, accompanied by rapid movements in the water. They all knew it was the Water Pokemon fleeing from the sinking _Johto Jewel_, though none of them had anyway of telling. The water was liquid darkness closing in on them and crushing their bodies, squeezing the life and breath out of them. Together they had escaped the farm, The Minder and the exploding cruise ship, but it seemed they had finally found their match in the water, already taking them after only a few seconds in the water.

A light suddenly appeared, glowing much brighter than normal in the inky darkness. Gwenda and Andrew had succumbed to unconsciousness alongside Victoria, the force of impact and inability to swim leading them to slowly slip away. However, Millicent was managing to hang in there, using her strength and abilities that only a Pokemon could have to continue breathing, though she was also beginning to sink. The luminous red light that appeared was eerie in the dark water, and Millicent spun around, trying to find the source. A Staryu was floating only a few feet behind the Miltank, its jewel glowing like a spotlight across them all as they began to sink through the waters.

"Miltank Mil Mil Tank!" Millicent tried to say, but only a gurgling noise and a series of bubbles came out instead. Her limbs were flailing though, and Staryu moved aside to see Millicent pointing at three ex-slaves, sinking back into the darkness of the ocean.  
>"Staryu Yu Yu!" Staryu said in a majestic voice and quickly moved forwards. Its limbs cut through the ocean, and the Star Pokemon reached the three within seconds. Millicent reached out and grabbed onto the suitcase as Staryu spun around and piled Victoria, Andrew and Gwenda onto her limbs, their bodies overlapping each other and nearly blocking out the light.<p>

"Tank Mil!" Millicent said, forgetting about the bubbles. Staryu only nodded and swam back towards her, extending a limb for her to hold onto. Millicent quickly grasped on, holding as tight as she could, and felt a sudden jerk. It took a few seconds to realise that Millicent was being pulled through the water, bubbles smashing into her face as she did so. She didn't know how Staryu was doing it, or why she was helping out, but was just relieved someone had come to their rescue. The current was strong against Millicent, and she held tightly onto the suitcase to prevent everything going.

Than, with a sudden burst of fresh air and parting of water, Staryu flew almost magically out of the water, the three humans on top and Millicent clasping on. Staryu's red jewel didn't glow as brightly here, but as Millicent took deep breathes, she noticed in the glow that they were hurtling towards the very corner of a docks, right next to a warehouse.

"TAAAANK!" She screamed, and let go at the last second. She smashed into the very edge, sending chunks of concrete flying, but Staryu was able to skid to a halt, her three passengers toppling off. "Miltank Mil Tank Tank Mil!" Millicent puffed, hauling herself up out of the crater she'd created. She continued to breathe in as she examined where they had landed. It appeared to be the very end of the Slateport City Port, right in the corner by a wooden warehouse next to her. No one else was in sight, and the only light available came from the moon, though it was shielded by clouds, and from Staryu's jewel.

"Yu Star Star Staryu!" Staryu said dramatically, and Millicent waddled forwards: Victoria was coughing, slowly rising up and she spluttered out water.

"Wh-wh-what happened?" She said, rubbing her head and chest as the water ran down her chest. "Why aren't we on the ship? Where's The Minder?" But than Victoria noticed Andrew and Gwenda soaking bodies beside her, both unconscious but their chests rising slowly. Her eyes than looked up at Millicent, and then towards dancing flames in the background. Victoria gasped as she and Millicent watched the _Johto Jewel _go down, snapped cleanly in two and unable to be saved. Victoria broke down, unable to hold it in, and Millicent pulled her into a silent hug, tears streaming down her face as well, knowing that the destruction was her fault. They sat in silence, Staryu providing them with a sombre glow, simply watching, wondering, hoping that the path ahead would be clearer than this…

High above them, completely out of their view, The Minder watched the cruise ship sink. Skarmory's metal body was hard and cold in the cooling temperature, and he wanted to get low and recover from the injuries he had sustained. But The Minder watched the boat sink first, wondering if his enemies had managed to escape, and if he was still on the hunt for them. The Minder hoped they were still alive, because he was willing to kill them now more than ever. He gave Skarmory a tap, and turned scowling away from the sinking wreckage, mentally planning his next move.


	16. Part Three: Adventures in Hoenn

**Part Three: Adventures in Hoenn **

Hoenn, by far, is one of the most beautiful and interesting regions in the Pokemon World.

No other place has such a board range of environments, communities, Pokemon or places to visit. You can walk for about an hour and manage to walk through a bustling cityscape, a riveting forest of activity, dark and mysterious tunnels, wide fields of grass and back to the nearest small town or city that is beginning to lift off.

Caves and rock tunnels are scattered throughout, providing an exciting adventure for those who choose to travel through them and uncover the Pokemon within. Two volcanoes are found throughout: one scatters ash across a town that has learnt to deal with it and accept it, whilst another has been dormant for so long that people live in houses carved from the mountain's sides. A wide desert valley carves through several mountains, with plain walking tracks and grassy fields at either ends. One town has built itself around its hot springs, and one city has built its homes in gigantic tree houses that would send in child into a dizzying dream. Several cities had built up on islands cut off from the rest of Hoenn, while one town has built itself willingly in the ocean in wooden huts connected by rope bridges.

Hoenn is a place of amazing diversity and is the place most people choose to travel to, with a harbour system in Slateport that outshines all the rest and provides the best place for cruise ships to come in. Wheter they plan on searching through a route of near permanent rain to find one little Feebas as a souvenir, or simply want to travel down ash covered mountains and chase after Pokemon in the expansive Safari Zone that has nearly opened, Hoenn is a place of grand adventure and grand places to visit. There is something there for everyone to enjoy, and you will always leave Hoenn with a story to tell about the adventures you've had.


	17. Chapter Fourteen: Onwards

**Chapter Fourteen: Onwards**

From a dark and dusty warehouse, the group watched the clean up occur.

Victoria, Gwenda, Andrew, Millicent and the friendly Staryu stood on top of wooden crates in the corner of the abandoned warehouse they had landed next to. It was old and had no windows, opening it up to the weather and temperatures, and old pipes creaked and dripped water throughout the night.

But they had no care for that.

They watched mournfully as two tugboats sailed back into shore, dragging barges full of debris from the _Johto Jewel _behind them. This was the stuff that had been floating on the surface, and several more boats and about five cranes were searching through the early morning ocean, Water Pokemon trying to find as much debris as they could and help bring it back up. However, there was little hope for finding any survivors, as it was a long swim to Slateport, and the explosion had torn throughout the entire ship. People would have been blown up, badly built, blasted into unconsciousness, or simply unable to survive in the sinking, burning ship.

And they knew it was all their fault.

As the tug ship came into the dock, Victoria sighed and collapsed onto the crate, her fellow slaves copying her instantly. Millicent continued to stare out at the ocean, her new Staryu friend joining her in watching.

"This is just terrible," Victoria groaned, resting her head in her hands. "I thought we had left all this stuff behind! I can't believe the Minder found us like that! And the _Jewel_…," Victoria wanted to say something powerful and meaningful, but the words couldn't come out, though the others knew how she felt. The cruise ship had been the first place they had felt free in many years, where they had finally been able to be free and enjoy their lives again before this adventure they were embarking on. To have this symbol of hope and freedom blow up before them was a great loss to them all.

"I just feel bad for those nice maids, they didn't deserve that fate," Gwenda said with a slight sob. "I mean, no one deserves to be blown up, but those other guests were just so mean to us for no reason! Those maids at least treated us right."

"The Minder seemed to think it was all some big joke, as if all those white guests knew something we didn't," Andrew added grumpily. They sat in silence for a few moments, listening to the distant sounds of dock workers talking amongst themselves, the tug boats whistling as they got closer into port. They dwelled over what had happened, how close they had come to death and, even worse, being captured again by The Minder. But at least he was dead, the explosion too powerful for him to have survived. Their path ahead was clear, though their consciences weren't

_We caused that explosion, _Victoria thought, tears rising up in her eyes. _It was Millicent's Bide that set things off. It was us that brought The Minder there, us that started the fight, Andrew and I that… _Victoria stopped her thoughts there, simply allowing the tears to flow. What had happened between her and Andrew in the boiler room had been magical, the greatest moment of her life to date. Associating that with the explosion, turning that happy moment into a sign of sadness and death… Victoria couldn't tarnish her feelings like that. She had lost everything in life, but she wouldn't lose her memories.

"How is the suitcase looking?" Victoria asked, wiping her tears away, the thought of memories reminding her about their possessions. Andrew pulled it between the three of them and opened it up: surprisingly, the suitcase had managed to hold, and only some water had seeped through.

"Wow, this thing sure is sturdy," Gwenda said with a slight smirk.

"I don't think anything is damaged," Victoria said, grabbing their clothes, the hand mirror, Victoria's books and articles. There was some slight water damage to the books and the clothes were a bit wet, but otherwise they were fine.

"We better put this back too," Victoria said, and grabbed the hedge clippers, which were a bit rusted following their trip in the ocean, and placed it back in the suitcase. Asides from Millicent, it was their only weapon. Victoria remembered the power that she felt when she held the clippers in her hand, jabbing them down towards The Minder. Would she be able to do something as courageous as that again? The Minder was out of their way now, but someone else could get in their way again at some point. Victoria had anger she wanted to let loose, and remembered back to the conversation she and Andrew had before they had slept together. Victoria had these dark thoughts, and she needed to find a way to let them out, let her move on from the farm. But Andrew didn't care that she had this emotion, and Victoria looked towards him, their eyes meeting for the first time that day. They smiled at each other, and Victoria wanted to reach out and grasp his hand, take him away and be alone together again.

"What happened between you two back on the ship?" Gwenda asked, and the connection and the thoughts instantly broke.

"What do you mean?" Andrew asked nervously, and Victoria caught Millicent whispering something to Staryu, giggling.

"You were just down there for a long time, I was getting worried," Gwenda said casually, grasping the clippers and giving them a playful snap. Victoria and Andrew looked at each other nervously and blushed.

"Nothing, nothing at all," Andrew said a bit too quickly, and reached into the suitcase for something to distract them. "Hey, what's this?" He gasped, and pulled something out. The girls turned to see the paper bag they had put the remaining Apricorn Balls into, with Millicent's Heavy Ball on top.

"How many more of these do we have?" Victoria asked.

"Errr… five more, it seems," Andrew said, tipping them into the suitcase.

"That pink one is called a Love Ball, the blue one is a Lure Ball, and that green one is a Level Ball," Gwenda explained. "I can't remember the other two, but I have a feeling they'll be the Fast and Friend Balls. My mother had a lot of Apricorn Balls back before…," but Gwenda froze, staring at them almost in shock. Victoria understood why: her friend had never said anything about how she lost her parents, and it was never nice whenever she remembered what had happened to hers. Victoria gave her a gentle pat and picked up some of the Apricorn Balls. Millicent waddled over and cradled hers, and the Staryu poked its nose in as well.

"I think we should take this one with us," Andrew said, giving the Staryu a pat. Staryu looked up at them, and though it had no mouth, Victoria could tell it was smiling at them. She looked across at Gwenda, who still looked a bit sad, wrapping the bottom of one of the dresses continuously around her finger.

"Gwenda, I think you should catch Staryu," Victoria said, winking over at Andrew. Gwenda looked up, eyes wide with shock.

"Me… really?"

"Of course!" Andrew said, catching on. "You said you couldn't swim, so Staryu could help you out with that!" Gwenda's face was beginning to light up, and she leapt to her feet with the Lure Ball in her hand.

"Really, are you sure?" She squealed, and the two nodded and she squealed again in excitement. "Staryu, do you want to be my Pokemon?"

"Staryu Star Star!" Staryu replied, spinning in mid air in excitement. Victoria, Andrew and Millicent took a step backwards, and Gwenda threw the Lure Ball towards Staryu. It touched her and coated her in blue energy, which Staryu dissolved into and entered the Apricorn. The ball closed with her inside, and fell into the suitcase, wiggling several times before glowing blue and stopping. Gwenda was shocked for a second, staring down at her new capture, but than burst out in a chorus of screams and jumps of delight.

"YES!" She screamed, picking the Lure Ball up and spinning around with it. Victoria and Millicent smiled at each other, glad to see that Gwenda was so happy. "I should give her a nickname, like Millicent. Umm… Starlet? No… um…,"

"Scarlet?" Victoria suggested, and Gwenda's face lit up again.

"Yes, that is perfect, thank you!" And Gwenda gave Victoria a quick but tight hug before raising the Lure Ball up. "Scarlet the Staryu, come and join us!" The ball burst open, and Scarlet formed at Gwenda's feet.

"Star!" It cried, and Gwenda clapped her hands together and gave her a hug. Victoria felt all warm inside, and all thoughts of the _Johto Jewel _left her completely as she saw the happy look on her friends face. But the tension was shattered as Andrew suddenly closed the suitcase lid with an echoing noise, attracting all attention towards him.

"Sorry to interrupt this, but we do need to get going, don't we?" He said, and held up the map of Hoenn. Victoria had completely forgotten about their quest in all of the commotion, and quickly rushed to Andrew's side to glance at the map with him. They were currently in Slateport City, but Lilycove City was nearly on the other side of the region.

"Mil Mil," Millicent said, pointing towards one section of land.

"That is Route 110," Andrew explained, and traced along the zigzagging route with his finger. "It shouldn't take too long to walk it, and that means we can be in Mauville City by the end of the day. Than we can catch a ferry across the strait towards Route 118 and carry on to Lilycove from there."

"We'd better get going then if we're to reach Mauville by sundown!" Victoria said, grabbing the Heavy Ball and turning to Millicent. "Walking or riding?" Millicent pondered for a second, but than wrapped her left arm around Victoria's left and smiled. "I'll take that as walking," Victoria laughed. Gwenda picked Staryu up to rest in her arms, and Andrew heaved the suitcase up.

"Onwards to Lilycove then!" He shouted, and the friends headed for the door, knowing they had a strict schedule to stick to if they were to reach Lilycove in time for the Star Festival. But as they walked past the docks, watching cranes, men and Machamp alike shifting the wreckage of the cruise ship onto the docks, Victoria felt tears rise up in her again. They were the only survivors, and the explosion had been their fault. This guilt would linger over them forever more, and Victoria was sure she would imagine the screams of the guests as they were killed, just so they could continue on with her dream.

She just hoped she would make their memories proud and reach Lilycove in time. Than it might all seem worth it…


	18. Chapter Fifteen: Letter

**Chapter Fifteen: Letter**

From atop the nearest building, The Minder watched them leave.

He sighed in relief as he saw Victoria, Gwenda, Andrew and the Miltank move between buildings, clearly heading towards the city boundaries. The Minder had no idea what they were really planning, but he had a feeling they were heading towards Mauville City. If they were staying in Slateport, than they wouldn't be sneaking around, moving away from the docks and North towards the nearby routes. The Minder was very good at analysing and presuming, one of the reasons why he made such as good slave watcher, being able to detect who was up to no good and predict who was going to stuff up before they knew it. Thanks to this skill, The Minder safely bet that the slaves wouldn't go East towards the small towns, otherwise they would get a ferry and take a quicker route towards Route 104. Mauville was the safest bet, and The Minder needed to plan his next move.

At the moment, his body ached terribly. The Minder was not getting any younger, and his age didn't help the injuries. His leg that had been injured so long ago was currently throbbing painfully, and there were several bruises and burns on his body from the previous night. It was only at the last possible moment that Kadabra managed to get to The Minder, teleporting him away as the _Johto Jewel _exploded. He had taken the night off to rest, despite knowing where the slaves were, as there was no way he would have been able to take them on with his injuries at that moment.

But The Minder had a job to do. He needed to bring these slaves back. Edmund wanted them back so he could prove to the other slaves they would never escape and outwit him, but The Minder had his own reasons. These slaves had escaped under _his _guard, making _him_ look bad. If he didn't bring them back, Edmund would most likely fire him, get a younger, fitter, tougher man in to marshal the slaves. The Minder had nowhere else to go: no family, no friends, no house, only his Pokemon and the tiny shack he slept in. Bringing these slaves back alive, so they could be tortured and killed in front of the others, was a personal matter for The Minder, and wasn't going to let himself down.

As the slaves began to disappear out of the coastal city, becoming tiny specks entering the trees and grass, The Minder turned towards a piece of paper and ink pot he had pulled out before noticing the slaves. He had a message in mind, and quickly began to scribble it down.

_Dear Edmund._

_I am writing to say that the mission, so far, is not going as well as planned. I managed to find out, through some talkative Olivians, that the slaves had board the boat 'Johto Jewel'. I managed to get aboard and attempted to capture them, but after a battle, where they enlisted the use of their Miltank, I was defeated and they escaped. I would have chased after, but I was only teleported away from the ship seconds before it exploded as a result of the fight._

_I am recovering from injuries sustained, but I will be fine to continue. I believe the slaves are walking towards Mauville City in Hoenn, though I am not quite sure of what they are heading towards or planning on doing. However, I plan on ambushing them as they enter the city and will hopefully capture them there, otherwise prevent them from getting any further._

_If I manage to succeed in Mauville, I will Teleport back to the farm straight away. I recommend you ready the knives and the nooses, and I would like to have first cut of the Victoria girl and the Miltank – they were the main ones who injured me on the cruise liner._

_Hoping the farm is well,_

_C.C._

The Minder read through the letter again and then smiled, his aged, sun damaged face looking as frightening as ever. He then pulled a blue Level Ball from his pockets and pressed a button, causing it to open up.

"Return," he said into it, and seconds later there was a sudden flash. Kadabra stood besides him, placing a small sack fill of fruits, cheeses, breads and bottles of milk and wine next to him. "Good haul," The Minder said with a nod, and passed the letter towards him. "Take this to Edmund and then return immediately."

"Kadab," Kadabra responded and grabbed the letter, glowing white once again. The Minder averted his eyes as he teleported away, and looked off towards where the slaves had walked towards.

"I look forward to finding you," he growled, "I look forward to finding you three and destroying you with my bare hands. No slave will ruin me, and I won't let my record be tarnished!" The Minder continued to stare off into space, waiting for Kadabra to return so they could fly towards Mauville on Skarmory, and ways of killing the slaves entered The Minder's mind, making him smile his sadistic smile.

"Yes… thank you. You may leave now."

A bright flash filled the room, and Edmund watched as the Kadabra teleported away. He stared down at the letter, trying his best to keep his anger under control, but several phrases leapt out that infuriated him: I was defeated… they escaped… not sure of what they are heading towards… hopefully capture them… hoping the farm is well…

"The farm would be well if you did your bloody job!" Edmund roared, and threw the letter into the fireplace, glaring down at the embers that sparked upon contact, watching the paper as it quickly burnt up. Edmund didn't sit down straight away, though the living room was nearly bare following his angry outburst. The damaged furniture had been taken away, and Grace planned to buy some replacements once her injuries had healed. Unfortunately, she continued to be her husband's punching bag and was now bedridden, trying to recover from her multiple bruises, leaving the house untended and the living room empty.

Edmund was close to breaking point now. Ever since the breakout, the slaves were beginning to rebel. It seemed they didn't want to stay in the farm anymore, now that they knew of an alternative, and were beginning to get lazy. The Pokemon weren't being tended to, the crops weren't being tended to, the work with the railway line was being ignored. Some slaves didn't even do work, simply finding places to hide where Marvin and Victor wouldn't be able to get them, such as trees, bushes, hidden corners of Lucifer's Cage, The Minder's cottage, The Shack. The Pokemon were growing restless as well, firing attacks, destroying their homes, ruining the crop as they stampeded. Miltank Meadows was quickly collapsing, and Edmund needed the slaves to return.

Once Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew returned, Edmund would slaughter them as inhumanely as possible, right in front of everybody else. Than he would torture and kill the Miltank, making sure the other Pokemon saw. Edmund wanted everyone in the farm to know he was in charge, to know they would never escape and they will never be allowed to disobey again.

"Father, father!" A cry came out from the doorway, and Edmund turned angrily around, knowing it wouldn't be good news. Judith ran in wearing her nightgown, looking petrified. "Father, some of Tauros and Miltank are stampeding again and are attacking the wall! Victor and Marvin need your help!"

"GAAAAAH! Can't those idiots do anything for themselves?" Edmund screamed, grabbing his chair and throwing it to the wall. Judith screamed, but Edmund glared at her and she fell silent once more. "I'll be out in a moment," he said, and Judith and fled so quickly she could have teleported as well. Edmund stared back in the flames, watching as the last of the letter was burnt and turned to ash.  
><em>Those slaves better be back here soon, or I am going to Hoenn and dragging them back here myself, <em>Edmund growled, before grabbing the fire poker and storming outside, in a right mood to slaughter the rampaging Pokemon… and a few slaves.


	19. Chapter Sixteen: Grass

**Chapter Sixteen: Grass**

"How long have we been walking?"

Victoria and Andrew turned grumpily around to face Gwenda, who was dragging her feet a few metres behind them. She had been complaining for the best part of an hour, and it was the fourth time she had asked this question.

"Once again Gwenda, I don't have a watch, we don't know how long we've been walking!" Andrew snapped. "Let's just settle with the fact we've walked a long way and leave it at that," he added grumpily, and turned back to face the way ahead. Victoria simply looked across at Millicent, who was walking alongside, and sighed.

They had indeed walked for a long way. Though they didn't have a watch, they knew it had been many hours since they left Slateport City behind as they headed towards Mauville. They had between rows of beautiful trees that towered up above them, very much unlike the ones Victoria was use to seeing around Miltank Meadows. They seemed to touch the sky, and Victoria had been tempted to try and climb up their branches, try and climb up as high as she could go, and see if she would be able to touch the stars.

It wasn't long before they left the trees behind, and they found themselves embarking down the main part of Route 110. Based on the map, this route was S-shaped, turning in three parts in a completely different direction. Stepping onto this part of the route, Victoria can see that magnificent deep blue oceans were on either side, restricting the size of the route to the width of a railway line, with little space on either side. A sign nearby stated that the SEASIDE ROAD BRIDGE – COMING SOON, clearly as a way to fix this size restriction, but Victoria was quite happy to be walking through the long green grass that tickled her knees, breathing in the fresh ocean air and seeing the many Pokemon flourish in their natural environment.

Since her parents had died and Victoria had been sent to the orphanage and then Miltank Meadows, there hadn't been much variety in the Pokemon she had seen. However, finally being back exploring through grassy routes, she was beginning to remember names her parents had taught her before their demise. Packs of Wingull flew above their heads, their loud, high pitched screeches like music to Victoria's ears. A school of Magikarp swum beneath the water's surface, while intimidating Tentacool bobbed above them, giving the trio reproachful looks. Blue and green Oddish ran between the long and short grass, their long green hairstyle's allowing them to blend into their surroundings. Plusle and Minun chased after each other, Zigzagoon nibbled away at berries, and the poisonous Gulpin oozed through the grass. Victoria was ecstatic to be back amongst wild Pokemon, and hoped they would be able to encounter more on their journey.

But they continued to walk along Route 110. It seemed to stretch on longer than they had had expected, and had only turned two of the three bends. The sun was high above them and was baking their skin, and Victoria was certain that the amount she sweated could have filled a troth back at the farm. The dresses didn't make for comfortable walking, being too long and too hot, and that was most of the reason why Gwenda was lingering behind. Scarlet the Staryu was constantly using BubbleBeam to help cool her down, but it didn't seem to be enough to keep her going. Andrew, however, seemed to have more energy than anyone else combined, even though he was carrying the suitcase and was marching on ahead, making up for lost time. Victoria wasn't sure whose side to take in this: Gwenda, who had been her friend for much longer, or Andrew, who she now had a bond with that no one else could match.

"I think we should take a rest," Victoria called out, deciding to meet in the middle. Andrew stopped and turned around, looking slightly curious and slightly furious, while Gwenda seemed to keep on going, despite being nearly red in the face. "I'm feeling a bit tired, so I think we should all just take a little break!" To emphasize her point, Victoria flopped down in some short grass and beamed at the two.

"Mil!" Millicent said in agreement, and sat down alongside. However, Andrew simply let out a loud groan and stayed where he was.

"There's no time to rest, Victoria! We're on this mission for you, after all, and we can't afford to waste time sitting down when there's only a few days left until the Star Festival!" He snapped.

"We're not all as fit and fast as you, Andrew," Victoria said, trying to keep things sweet. "Sitting around milking Miltank and doing gardening isn't exactly a way to stay fit now, is it? I'm only asking for a few minutes!"

"And how exactly are you going to count these few minutes?" Andrew snapped. "Besides, we all know your just waiting for Gwenda to catch up!" Gwenda looked up crossly at the sound of her name, and Victoria had seen her get cross very easily back at the farm when pushed to her limits, and hot days never really helped this.

"I am… just fine… thank you!" She growled, taking deep breathes in between words. She picked Scarlet up, who fired another light BubbleBeam, and began to march forwards. "Come on Vic… toria… if Andrew can… keep going… then so can… we!"

"No, I really want a rest!" Victoria growled, looking to Millicent who help, who simply shrugged. "It's a hot day and we've been walking for a long time: it would seriously do us all some good if we just sat down, had a little drink and calmed down!"

"I'm perfectly calm!" Andrew shouted in a rather contradictive tone, and quickly realised this and took several deep breathes. "Victoria, we are nearly at Mauville City, I can see it in the distance! We've only got about a week or so left until the Star Festival, possibly even less. I just don't want us to slow down when we've come so far. I thought that's what you wanted!"

"I do want it, but I don't want us to hate each other at the end of it!" Victoria shouted, leaping to her feet. Gwenda was beginning to walk past her, head held high, and clambered through the long grass to avoid Andrew. "Come on, we escaped together! We've leapt from exploding cruise ships, leapt onto passing trains! Let's not let some sun and a long walk ruin things for us!" She got to her feet, figuring the other two wouldn't sit down, and put a smile upon her face. However, Gwenda simply continued walking, not even looking back towards them. "Andrew, apologise to her! We need to be in this together!" Andrew sighed and turned around, and Gwenda paused in her path, clearly waiting for this faithful words.

"Gwenda… I'm sorry your so slow," Andrew said, and Millicent stifled a snigger as Gwenda turned angrily around.

"Staryu Star!" Scarlet snapped, stars shooting out of her jewel and exploding against Andrew's chest. It was Gwenda's turn to laugh as Andrew leapt backwards, his arms, flailing madly as he beat back the Swift attack. Victoria watched this unfold and turned around in disgust, marching back the way they had come. She wasn't going to try and sort them out if they didn't want to play nicely. Victoria had had a feeling for a while that Andrew and Gwenda weren't getting along, possibly because they had both come on this adventure because of her, not to be close to each other. She had hoped they would have gotten on together by now, but it seemed that they weren't anywhere near that happening.

"Victoria, come back!" Andrew shouted, but Victoria refused to look back, focused entirely on putting distance between herself and them. _Let them sort out their own problems, _she thought viciously, _it's not my job! I'd gladly keep on walking, but I'm not walking with them if their going to be so stupid about – _

"AAAAAH!" Victoria suddenly screamed, as she found herself tumbling forwards. She had only been looking ahead, not down, and hadn't noticed something resting in front of her. There was a cry at the same time as Victoria yelled out, and there was nothing to stop her from falling. There was a sharp pain in her foot as she turned to try and stop herself, and Victoria screamed again as she fell into the long grass, her face smashing into the earth and her hands scraping.

"VICTORIA!" Andrew and Gwenda both shouted, but Victoria couldn't lift herself off the ground, too tired from all the walking to move a muscle. Something moved next to her, and Victoria looked up to see a green Pokemon staring quizzically at her. It nudged against her, a sorry look in its eyes, and Victoria realised this must be what she tripped over.

"Victoria, are you alright?" There was a swift movement, and Victoria cried out as Millicent heaved her onto her feet. Andrew and Gwenda looked concerned as they all converged on her, and the green Pokemon backed away at the sudden appearance of all the people.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," Victoria insisted, but as Millicent lowered her, the pain in her right foot shoot upwards and she cried out. "Alright, maybe my foot is just a bit sore… I think I twisted it when I fell."

"Oh dear, this is all our fault!" Gwenda whined, and she suddenly threw her arms around Victoria, pulling her into a tight hug. "If we hadn't upset you, this wouldn't have happened! I'm so sorry!"

"It is fine Gwenda, don't worry," Victoria said with a smile, but her eyes were glancing towards Andrew, wondering if he was going to apologise. But the only male in their group had his attention on the Pokemon below him, who was trying to move backwards into the grass.

"This is an Electrike," Andrew said, his tone very different to how it had been only a few moments ago: he sounded much calmer and almost in his own little world as he stared downwards. "It's an Electric type. My brother had one before he…," but Andrew stopped there, leaving Victoria and Gwenda in shock. They had never heard Andrew speak about his family before, and Victoria wondered why the thought had never occurred to her in the past. Andrew continued to have his back turned to them as he opened up the suitcase and reached in, pulling out the Fast Ball they had looked over earlier that day. He got down to one knee and looked at the Electrike, who backed away again.

"Elec Elec!" He said, sparks flying from the yellow lines running around his body, but Andrew extended the Fast Ball out, not worrying about them.

"Would you like to come on our journey? We could really use a Pokemon like you," he said calmly. The Electrike looked a reproachful and began to take another step backwards, but he stared at the Fast Ball and gave a nod. Victoria could tell Andrew was smiling as he pressed the Fast Ball against the Electrike's forehead and he was sucked inside. Andrew got to his feet and turned around, his face indeed lighting up as the ball shook in his hands. There was a flash and it froze, and Victoria clapped her hands together in happiness. Andrew simply nodded and put the Fast Ball into his pockets, his face remaining happy but he didn't say a word.

"Miltank Mil Mil Tank Mil!" Millicent said grumpily, shaking Victoria to draw their attention back towards her, but Victoria simply felt her body being shaken terribly. As all eyes turned back towards her, Victoria felt a sharp pain in the front of her head. She gasped and touched her head, trying to bite back the pain, but Victoria could feel herself slipping away. Gwenda and Andrew both cried and rushed towards her, but Victoria's vision was going black, and she simply shut her eyes as her body went limp, unable to explain things, but she knew something was wrong.


	20. Chapter Seventeen: Doctor

**Chapter Seventeen: Doctor**

Victoria awoke with a start, and instantly found an unfamiliar face hovering above her.

"Ah, good to see you Miss Freeman!" The man said warmly, a big smile on his face. Victoria, however, was afraid, and backed away from him. She looked around the small room she was in, with simple wooden walls and floors, a closed door and a bucket of water in the corner. The bed was stiff and the sheets and blankets were a foul shade of yellow, but Victoria was more concerned with why she was here: who was this man, where were Millicent, Gwenda and Andrew? Hadn't she just been on Route 110 a few moments ago?

"Relax m'dear, just relax," the man said, trying to push her down, but Victoria frightfully beat his hands away. "You just had a bit of a fall and hurt your ankle, and then passed out. I think your just dehydrated, so I need to give you some water and –"

"Who are you?" Victoria snapped, carefully poking her ankle out from the end of the sheets. A bandage was wrapped around, and she remembered it hurting when she moved it before, but now it seemed to have healed or be in the process of healing.

"My name is Doctor Alfred Granger," the man said, beginning to laugh a bit. "I probably should have led with that! Your friend, Andrew, brought you in. He's just outside, been waiting all night!"

"All night!" Victoria gasped. "How long have I been unconscious?"

"Over night, a few hours on either side of the evening," Doctor Granger explained as he passed over a glass of water. "Andrew said that you had been walking for some time when you tripped over an Electrike and fell, and then shortly passed out. I think you were just a bit dehydrated and probably a bit tired, which is explainable when walking in the heat for so long! Just drink up and rest, and you'll be able to go once I think your better."

"But that's all that's wrong with me?" Victoria asked in between mouthfuls of water, and Doctor Granger nodded. "Good, I was getting a bit nervous there for a second!" The doctor tipped back his head and laughed once again, and didn't notice as the door slowly opened up behind him.

"Is it alright if I come in?" Andrew asked. Alfred looked at Victoria, who nodded, and Andrew stepped cautiously in. "Gwenda took Millicent for a walk around Mauville, to take the sights in a bit."

"We're in Mauville?" Victoria gasped, and Andrew nodded.

"Took a while to bring you here, and then we had to find the right doctor," Andrew explained, and Doctor Granger's laugh quickly left his face.

"Yes… you were lucky I was out walking my Mightyena or you might have ended up in the wrong place," he said grimly. "Not too many doctors around anywhere that would treat a black girl being brought in by a white boy. Many of them would have tied you up and done the exact opposite of doctoring you…," he sighed, and Victoria and Andrew nodded, beginning to understand the racial tension that existed around them. "But yes, at least you found me, and you can soon catch the ferry!" Victoria looked surprised, but Andrew nodded at her and she decided to play along. A bell jingled outside, and the doctor excused himself to see who had turned up.

Silent tension fell between the two as the door closed. Victoria looked away from Andrew's beautiful eyes as she remembered why she had stormed off, how Andrew and Gwenda had argued. She could tell Andrew was feeling guilty, and she could imagine Gwenda was as well, but Victoria was annoyed with them. With all the pain and hatred that they had walked into by leaving the farm behind, there wasn't any need for these two to be at each other's throats.

"I am sorry, so very sorry," Andrew said, and Victoria nodded stiffly. "It was just the heat getting to me, and the fact we aren't making that great of progress. Gwenda does annoy me at times, but I shouldn't have overreacted."

"Okay," Victoria replied, still feeling hurt at the anger between her two friends. "I don't want to have to be put in a position where I have to choose between you two! Gwenda is my oldest friend and I couldn't bear to be without her, but I lov – like you a lot as well," Victoria quickly changed words as she found her face blushing furiously, and she looked away, but not before catching Andrew's face blush as well. They sat in silence once more, not quite sure what to say to each other. Victoria had been questioning her feelings for Andrew, and that one night they spent together had meant so much to her, but did she love him? Had it been long enough for them to fall in love? Was there even a schedule for love: _you must have done this, this and this before you may fall in love._ Victoria simply clutched her head and drank her water, all these thoughts too difficult to comprehend in her state.

"I don't know if I ever told you this," Andrew said, his voice as quite as a Pichu, "but I was rich when my family was around. Not like living in a castle with our own personal railway rich, but we survived pretty decently. My parents ran a hotel in Goldenrod City, and we all lived in a nice room on the third floor. Lots of guests came through, and we managed to make a lot of money out of it. There were always weddings and giant balls and lots of famous people gathering around. I helped wash dishes in the kitchen and sweep all the tables and make beds to earn my pocket money. My brother, Alexander, was two years older than me, so he got to look after all the guests Pokemon with his Electrike. I always wanted a Pokemon, but my parents said not until I was ten…," Victoria nodded along, clutching her glass so tightly in her hand that it might break, staring at Andrew as the pain seemed to fill his eyes.

"It was the 24th of June 1902, at about six in the evening when it happened," he continued, his voice beginning to shake. "I was in the kitchens at the time, but they were right next to the ballroom, so we could hear the shouts. A man was drunk and accusing his wife of having an affair. My parents stepped in to try and break them apart, but the man got angry, accusing my parents of helping his wife hide the affair in the hotel, and began ranting about the price of rooms and alcohol. Then he pulled a gun out and several PokeBalls. He sent out several Vigoroth that were absolutely mental. They destroyed the room and sent everyone fleeing, as the man raised the gun and fired three bullets: one hit his wife, the other two…" Victoria gasped and put her hands to her face, the glass slipping and crashing to the floor. The jolt seemed to shake Andrew and he almost jumped up, tears streaming slowly down her face.

"That is… that is terrible…," Victoria sobbed, tears beginning to fill her own eyes, and Andrew simply nodded, his hands wringing around each other.

"Alex and I went to the orphanage in Ecruteak shortly after the funeral; none of our family wanted us, just the deeds to the hotel. My brother was taken away almost a week later by a nice couple, and I lingered by myself for the next few months, until a nice man named Edmund arrived… I thought I was going to be happy again, that I could put back watching my parents get shot behind me… frankly, I would have rather stayed in the orphanage…"

"I don't…," Victoria said softly. "If you'd stayed there, than we would have never met… well, we would have when I went there, but it wouldn't be the same. That orphanage is just depressing, no one talks to more than about two other people. The farm brought us together, and though it is an awful, horrendous place, I am just glad to have gotten some great people and Pokemon out of there." She extended her hands out and grasped Andrew's, and he looked up at her, their teary eyes meeting, and he leant forwards and kissed her. It wasn't as powerful or overwhelming as their previous ones, but their lips remained in embrace for nearly a minute as they savoured the touch of the other, their hands snaking around into hugs.

"The reason why I want to keep going is because I have a wish as well," Andrew whispered. "I want to be able to find my brother one more time, and, if possible, someone how see my parents. Asides from staying with you, it is the only thing I could ask for out of life."

"That is beautiful," Victoria whispered, and they kissed once again. "I will do anything to help you achieve that goal." Andrew simply nodded, and they remained in their hug for another few minutes. Victoria wanted to force her mouth open, to say the three little words she had nearly said before, as now seemed like it could be the moment, the right moment to say them. But Andrew pulled away, wiping his eyes as he smiled warmly at her, and Victoria cursed herself for not speaking faster.

"I should see if Doctor Granger will let us go yet," Andrew said, getting to his feet but still with Victoria's hands in his. "Gwenda was going to look at the ferry timetables, see if we can get to the other side of Hoenn as soon as possible. The Star Festival is only four days away, including today, so we need to get a move on."

"Four days!" Victoria gasped, not realising how much little time they had left. "Yes, go quickly, we must get out of here!" Andrew nodded, staring down at her hands as he let them go. He walked slowly backwards, smiling warmly at her, before slowly turning and opening the door. Victoria slid back in the bed, thinking about the moment they had just shared. She knew that she did indeed love Andrew, and could feel that he loved her back, and sometime, hopefully by the time they reached Lilycove City, there would be the right moment and they would be in the right place for her to pluck up the courage and declare her feelings, and hope that it felt as good as she thought it would.


	21. Chapter Eighteen: Ferry

**I personally think this one of the best written, most powerful things I've ever written, and I would love to get some feedback on it and see if any of you agree. Thanks and I hope you all enjoy!**

**Chapter Eighteen: Ferry**

The sun was shining its hottest rays once again, but this time over Mauville City. The city was small but busy, with many businesses, mostly science and technology related, located around here. It was quite an open city, as there were four ways of leaving it, and many people jokingly called it an 'intersection with buildings.' The only travellers who stayed here were Hoenn League hopefuls attending the Mauville Gym, or those that were using the ferry service to get to the other side of Hoenn.

"It is soooo hot!" Gwenda groaned, waving herself with a fan Doctor Granger's receptionist had given her. Millicent and Scarlett walked alongside her, and the Miltank let out a loud 'moo' of agreement. "Why do we have to be the ones to go and find the ferry? Why can't Andrew have done it?" Gwenda snapped, and angrily kicked a rock that was in front of her.

"Staryu Star Star?" Scarlett asked, and Gwenda simply shook her head at her and looked away into the distance.

She wasn't angry with them, like Scarlett had asked, more… annoyed. Gwenda had meant to be going on this grand adventure with Victoria, her only friend over the past few years and the only thing that had helped her through such a tough and dark place in her life. Gwenda had been looking forward to travelling together, reaching Lilycove City and celebrating the festival as they found Jirachi.

Not that Gwenda disliked Andrew, but he hadn't been factored into their quest. He was very attractive and very fit, and Gwenda knew that Victoria had fancied him for quite a long time. Putting the two together was only going to build a strong relationship between them, and Gwenda was convinced they were both in love with the other. Whatever they said about what they had done in the boiler room, Gwenda knew it was a lie, and something much more special had occurred between them.

Gwenda just felt left out. While their bond got stronger, Gwenda was being shoved aside in the process. She had been the one who got chased by The Minder throughout the _Johto Jewel_¸ but they didn't seem to care about her feelings from that. And if Andrew got angry, which of the two was he going to take his feelings out on? Gwenda just wanted to be close to her old friend and try and build a new friendship with Andrew, but if she kept getting shunned aside by their blossoming romance, how was this going to happen?

"Millicent… do you… do you think Victoria likes Andrew more than me now?" Gwenda asked sadly. Millicent gasped and came to a stop, and Scarlett's jewel seemed to flash in surprise.

"Miltank Tank Tank Mil Miltank Tank Tank!" Millicent said in a hushed voice, shaking her head. Gwenda smiled and nodded, a tear streaming down her face. "Tank Tank Tank!" Millicent cried, and gave her a back crunching hug. Gwenda gasped for breath, but appreciated the gesture and hugged the Miltank back, though her arms didn't make it the full way around.

"Thank you for the reassurance," Gwenda said once Millicent had let go, and she massaged her back a bit to numb the pain. "It's just been playing on my mind since we landed in Hoenn. I may just be acting silly."

"Staryu Yu Yu Star?" Scarlett suggested, and Gwenda pondered over the thought for a moment.

"I don't want to upset them by telling them about it," Gwenda replied. "But if it gets worse, than I will talk to Victoria and see what she has to say about it." Scarlett and Millicent both nodded, and Gwenda felt like a load had been taken off her shoulders as they began to walk forwards, getting closer to the ferry port. Route 118 was quite beautiful, with many tall trees on both sides and long grass tickling Gwenda's knees as she strolled through it. Sandy spots appeared here and there, and Gwenda could see a proper beach of golden yellow sand appeared just in the distance.

The 118 Ferry was not a large service. Tickets were brought from a wooden stall to the side, and then passengers would line up on a wooden pier as the ferry pulled up. It was about a quarter of the size of the _Johto Jewel_¸ designed to only carry about fifty people, though usually many more tickets were sold until about a hundred people were crammed inside. It was a popular service for those wishing to get between one side of Hoenn to the other without travelling the difficult path to Fallarbor Town and catching the train, and a large crowd would usually turn out for the ferry, either going on holiday, on a Pokemon journey or desperately needing to get to the other side for whatever reason.

However, Gwenda was stunned by the amount of people there. It seemed as if everyone from the city had turned up, and then everyone from Slateport as well just to add to the mixture. Gwenda simply came to a stop as she stared at the queue of people waiting to get a ticket, and Millicent and Scarlett stopped alongside her.

"I can't even see where the timetable is through all these people!" Gwenda said, nearly speechless. The noise coming from the crowd was unbearably loud, with screaming toddlers and children, people arguing about luggage and the price of the tickets, people complaining about the length of the queue, even some Pokemon were adding their cries to the noise, two people even having a battle to pass the time.

"Miltank Mil Mil Tank?" Millicent asked.

"I doubt that this is the only place to find out the time," Gwenda said. "We might as well head back into town and try to find someone that has their own timetable?" Millicent and Scarlett nodded, and Gwenda began to turn around. She stared at the crowd though as she turned, and could see one thing was very clear: all of the people in the queue had white skin. If they could find a timetable, would Victoria and Gwenda even be allowed onboard? She remembered the comments The Minder had made, implying that her and Victoria would be outcast and Andrew for being with them. Was there some sort of prejudice for being of their skin colour? Gwenda couldn't remember much of her childhood, and couldn't remember ever be judged based on something like her skin colour, but were the memories just so old she couldn't remember?

"I really need to sit down," Gwenda sighed, rubbing her head. "The sun's getting to me… making my brain hurt!" She finally turned away from the crowd, and instantly saw that Millicent hadn't moved from where she had been a few moments before. Confused, Gwenda looked around, and felt her body seize up, her mind freeze, her legs nearly giving way as she saw who was standing there.

The Minder.

He looked exactly the same as he had in the _Johto Jewel's_ boiler room, except with a few more scars than before. But he still had his cane in one hand and his whip in the other, and his lips were curled in a cruel, mocking smile. Gwenda clutched onto Millicent for support, feeling her throat and heart sink down into her stomach. There was nowhere for her to run, trapped between the vicious slave driver and the crowds of people, most of whom were probably Pokemon less and unwilling to help anyway.

"Don't even try and fight this, Gwenda," The Minder purred as he stepped forwards. Scarlett moved in front, the jewel flashing threateningly, but the Minder simply laughed. "You have two Pokemon for protection… how lovely. I have three, and I think there are vastly more superior than a bejewelled starfish and a walking vat of milk."

"MIL!" Millicent said angrily, and took a step forwards, but the Minder flipped his cane up and pointed it at Gwenda's throat. She began hyperventilating, staring at the cane as it neared her throat, feeling her legs shake violently.

"If any of your Pokemon try anything, I will kill you all here and now," The Minder hissed, his calm manner passing as he let his angry side out. "You are going to walk with me and take me to find Victoria and Andrew. I will torture you briefly and kill anyone that helped you, and than take you back to the farm, where Edmund will surely have some fun tricks lined up, don't you think?"

"H-h-h-how did you sur-survive?" Gwenda asked, the only words she was able to form, and the Minder smiled again.

"The power of teleportation is always a convenient thing to have," he replied. "Kadabra managed to use Teleport a second before the entire thing exploded, and Skarmory flew me to safety. I actually used a contact the farm has with a gunpowder supplier, who smuggles his supplies from Johto in some of our vats. He gave me several barrels and Kadabra placed them in the 118 Ferry, just in case I wasn't able to capture you in time."

"You were going to kill innocent people just to kill us?" Gwenda gasped.

"Do not sound so surprised, darling," The Minder said, brushing a wrinkled hand against her head, sending shivers down her spine. "I will very willingly kill all of these people here right now if they try and stop me, but who of them will? They'll just think you belong to me for whatever reason, and no one is going to try and protect some foul little black girl like you. Now let us get moving. Edmund's patience is being tested enough, and I know that with each hour that passes, he will think of a new way to extend your pain, and we wouldn't want that now, would we?" He put his whip and cane in the same hand and grabbed hold of Gwenda's right arm, dragging her forwards as he walked. Gwenda tried to walk, but her legs finally gave way and she collapsed to the ground, nearly crushing Scarlett.

"GET UP!" The Minder roared, and brought his whip crashing down onto her chest. Her screams echoed around the route, and silence fell across the queue of people as they stared towards her. Gwenda looked up, seeing that there were all staring at her, the arguments and complaining stopping, all eyes focused on her. But not a single person moved from the queue. Not a single person dared to defy the Minder, dared to interrupt a situation they knew nothing about. Gwenda knew the Minder and Edmund were sick, twisted people, but seeing no one come forward to help her made her want to throw up. She was a human being, being tortured by someone and dragged to her death. She didn't care what her skin colour was, and neither should they.

But if no one else was going to help her, it was time Gwenda stood up for herself.

"GET UP I SAID, GET UP!" The Minder roared and he raised his whip again. But as it came down, Gwenda raised her free arm, grasping onto the blood stained leather. Using all her might and the Minder's surprise, she pulled on it. The Minder yelled out as he crashed face down in the grass, and Gwenda quickly leapt to her feet, Millicent helping her up. But she didn't accept her hug of support, simply staring down at who she could know see was a frail, foul tempered old man with a bad leg and a sick agenda.

"I don't care what your orders are," Gwenda hissed as The Minder gathered himself together, struggling to stand up. "If you want to kill me, Victoria, Andrew or any of our Pokemon, you are going to have to defeat me first!"

"STAR!" Scarlett added, and fired a shower of golden stars that sent the whip flying from the Minder's hand. The old man looked stunned, but his aging smile slowly crept back onto his face, his right hand driving the cane into the ground to help him get back onto his feet.

"Very well than, Gwenda, I will play your game," he said, pulling three Level Balls out of his pocket. "I will battle you, and one of us will win. And very simple prizes for that: if you win, you and your friend will live… for now. But if I win, I get to kill you before you can ever bring your Pokemon back, agreed?" Gwenda looked at the man, and then down at Millicent and Scarlett. She wasn't the best at controlling Pokemon, but these two were loyal and had decent moves between them. The Minder had a Skarmory, a Kadabra and something else, but he didn't know what her two Pokemon could do. And if Gwenda didn't stand up for her and her friends, kept running from battles that they fought for her, than how was she going to make it to Lilycove?

"I accept."


	22. Chapter Nineteen: Duel

**Chapter Nineteen: Duel**

The Minder seemed to purr as he moved backwards several paces, leaving enough space between him and Gwenda for a battle. Now that she was thinking about it, Gwenda wasn't sure if the battle would be a smart move or not: she had never seen The Minder battle properly, but she had a feeling his Pokemon had a lot of good moves like the personal Tauros Edmund Parrish had. And if he did have a third Pokemon, Gwenda would be left to be killed if Millicent and Scarlett fainted. She looked around, wondering if any Pokemon would appear, but only a Roselia was sitting on a rose bush was around, and she wasn't looking at the battle.

"Not nervous now, are we?" The Minder called cheerily. "I should say now that if you back down, I get to kill you, agreed?" Gwenda simply nodded, taking several deep breathes and getting back on focus. She glanced at the crowd and could see that it was moving along as they got their tickets, not making a sound and trying not to stare, but their eyes kept flickering back to them, still no one coming to help.

"Are you two ready?" Gwenda asked.

"Mil Mil!"

"Staryu Yu Star!"

"Excellent," Gwenda said, glad that they were confident. The Minder seemed to be ravishing in her discomfort and nervousness, and raised one of his Level Balls forwards as if offering her a treat.

"I shall take the first turn, shall I?" He said with a twisted smile, and allowed the ball to burst open, energy forming in front of him. A second later his Kadabra was standing there, spoon outstretched a mischievous glint in his eye.

"Ah, a Kadabra… a Psychic type!" Gwenda said, though she wasn't even sure if that was true. "I think I will use…"

"Staryu Star Star!" Scarlett said, moving forwards and flexing her limbs.

"I will use Scarlett!" Gwenda said happily, but this seemed to just make the Minder laugh once again.

"Your Pokemon are choosing for you… how pathetic!" He laughed, and Gwenda was tempted to run forwards and punch him in his wrinkled old face, but knew that she would have to fight fairly even if he wasn't going to. "Very well then – Kadabra vs Staryu… let us just see who comes out on top. Psybeam, go!"

"Kadab!" Kadabra said, and he put his spoon to his head. Rainbow circles shot out of his eyes in a rapid beam, washing over Scarlett and nearly knocking her over. Gwenda was shocked at the speed and power, and was beginning to doubt this battle even more.

"Alright… BubbleBeam!" She commanded. Scarlett fired a series of bubbles towards Kadabra, some of which hit, but he mostly slashed his spoon down and popped them all, leaving the Minder smiling.

"You'll have to do much better than that, I'm afraid," he said. "Disable!" Kadabra raised his spoon up, and it and his eyes glowed pink. They suddenly turned blue, and Scarlett flashed blue a moment later. Gwenda tried to think, and thought she knew what it did: Disable stopped moves that were just used from being used again. Already she was one move down.

"Swift!" Gwenda cried, and Scarlett rapidly fired the stars towards Kadabra. This attack seemed to work better and even forced Kadabra back slightly, but not enough to fully knock him down. "Brilliant, use it again!" Gwenda said.

"Cheating are we Miss Wilson?" The Minder growled, and Gwenda gasped: she had never told anyone, not even Victoria, her last name before. How did the Minder know something so personal and so secret? "If you are going to cheat, two can play at that game! Teleport repeatedly and than use Psybeam," The Minder commanded. Kadabra's body flashed white, and he suddenly began to pop all over the place. Scarlett would turn when he appeared and start firing, but Kadabra would have left before she got to him. Gwenda and Millicent felt giddy just watching this unfold and had to hold onto each other, and Gwenda was thrown when Kadabra suddenly appeared right behind Scarlett.

"Dabra," he said, and Scarlett hadn't even turned around before the Psybeam hit her. She rotated forwards like a run away cog and landed in a pile on the ground right near the queue. Gwenda gasped, and could see that Scarlett didn't look particularly good. The Minder smiled, and Kadabra began to slowly walk over with his spoon raised, obviously planning some sort of attack.

"Come on Scarlett, use Swift or… or… Recover! Or…," than Gwenda froze, her nervous face beginning to lighten up as she remembered what Scarlett's other move was that she had shown her earlier. "USE SURF!" The Minder gasped, and people in the queue began murmuring, clearly entertained by Gwenda's fight for her life.

"Staaaaar," Scarlett called, two of her limbs raising up. There was a sudden splashing sound from the waters behind, and Gwenda wasn't surprised the crowd was beginning to move. "YUUUUUU!" Scarlett yelled, and suddenly a wave of water rose up behind them. It snaked its way along the crowd, squeezing through the gap left the queue and arching over Scarlett. Kadabra looked shocked, and began to glow white in order to Teleport away, but it was too late: the wall hit him like a car and sent him spiralling, caught within the spiralling water. Scarlett got to her feet, her jewel flashing and her limbs twisting and moving, and she let the Surf raise up into the air, the same height at Lucifer's Cage.

"NOW!" Gwenda yelled, and the Surf disappeared. Kadabra fell many metres to the hard ground, landing with a loud, sickening thud. The Minder looked down at him, and for a moment Kadabra tried to move, but than his body became limp and his eyes crossed.

"YES!" Gwenda yelled, hugging Millicent and clapping as Scarlett spiralled over, her jewel flashing but still looking fairly weak. "That was an excellent job! You take a rest, Millicent can take his next Pokemon, if that is fine with her." Millicent nodded, and boldly took a step forwards as the Minder brought back Kadabra, stretching her muscles and glaring down at the old man.

"Very good job Gwenda," the Minder said with a snarl, replacing this Level Ball for the next. "I can see I underestimated you… but no matter, I can still stop you with my next Pokemon." Gwenda had more confidence now and didn't care for what he said, but tried to remember who the next Pokemon could be. Than she remembered a flash of silver and a loud thud as something crashed onto the deck of the _Johto Jewel_.

"Skarmory!" She gasped, and the Minder nodded as he unleashed his next Level Ball into the sky. They all looked upwards as the metallic bird formed, instantly squawking and screeching down at them. A Flying type would be harder to work with, and she wished she had Andrew's Electrike, but Gwenda knew of one move that would help them out.

"Rollout!" She called. Millicent folded up into a ball and began to roll forwards, moving around like a loose wheel and gathering up speed before heading for the trees, using them to help launch upwards.

"Air Slash," The Minder called. Skarmory spun around in mid air, gathering wind around her right wing, and than stopped and sent it flying towards Millicent. The speeding Miltank simply blasted through it and kept on rolling, crashing directly into Skarmory's chest.

"SKAAAR!" The metallic bird squawked as Millicent's heavy weight began to force her down, and Gwenda clapped as Skarmory was driven into the ground and Millicent simply rolled off. The Minder looked furious, and Gwenda could tell he was regretting getting involved in this battle.

"Use Rollout again, it will be easier now!" Gwenda called, and Millicent began to roll back at a greater speed than before. Skarmory was weakly getting up, the single Rollout clearly too strong for her.

"Use Slash, hurry up!" The Minder yelled. Gwenda was glad to see him angry and losing his dominance like this. She could never remember him ever training his Pokemon back at Miltank Meadows, and clearly his inexperience and possibly foul treatment of them was going to ruin things for him.

"Karmory Skar!" Skarmory squawked and flew forwards, right wing glowing a dazzling white. She was moving to one side and coming up close to Millicent, and Gwenda could see that either the Slash would knock Millicent aside or Millicent's Rollout would cause Skarmory to crash once more.

It turned out that both happened.

Millicent struck Skarmory's wing, and the two attacks seemed to work against each other. Skarmory cried out as she was sent spiralling to the side, but Millicent also began rolling out of control. The Roselia in the bush screamed and leapt aside as Millicent flattened it and crashed into a tree, folding out and looking dazed. Gwenda felt bad for her and the Roselia, but she heard the Minder scream and looked over towards Skarmory: she was lying like a heap of scrap metal, useless and unable to battle.

"Oh dear: it looks like I still have two Pokemon and you only have one. I wonder how this is going to turn out?" Gwenda said cheekily, and smiled back at the foul glare the Minder was giving her. Veins in his neck and forehead were throbbing with rage, and as he glared towards Skarmory, Gwenda was surprised the foul look wasn't going to melt her.

"I can still win this, so I would not be so cocky!" The Minder growled viciously, bringing Skarmory back and grabbing his last Level Ball. Gwenda shrugged as Millicent walked back, rubbing her head but otherwise fine.

"Are you fine to continue?" Gwenda asked, and Millicent nodded, and the three females turned towards the Minder as he released his next Pokemon. For a second Gwenda thought a rock had been sent onto the field, but arms suddenly came out of it, and she realised it was the legless Geodude. She looked at Millicent and her large body, and than down at Scarlett and her Water type attacks, and than up at the Minder and smiled.

"Funnily enough, I think I stand a chance at winning this," she said with a bright smile, and the Minder simply tightened his grip on his cane and whip. Gwenda didn't care about him any more though: facing him in battle simply showed that he was weak and incompetent and a terrible trainer, hiding behind his weapons for protection.

"Zen Headbutt," Gwenda commanded.

"Rollout," The Minder said angrily. Geodude wrapped his arms around his body and began to roll forwards, and Millicent ran forwards with her head glowing a bright pink. Millicent had a lot more weight and power behind her, and quite easily ran into Geodude and sent him flying backwards while only getting a little damage, the Rock and Ground type smacking into a tree and landing on the ground.

"GET BACK OUT THERE!" The Minder hissed, thrashing his whip against the ground. Geodude nodded and moved forwards fearfully. Gwenda had hoped it would have been easy enough, but she knew how to build up a powerful move.

"Bide, now!" Gwenda shouted, and the Minder seemed to curse this. Millicent began to glow white, gathering together the energy she would use.

"Keep using Rollout!" The old man growled, digging his cane into the ground in his rage. Geodude rolled forwards and struck Millicent in the stomach, but her weight absorbed the blow and she remained upright, staring down at the Geodude and smiling as she continued to glow. Gwenda was excited, knowing this battle was nearly over, and that she would be able to flee and get Victoria and Andrew and sort out a new plan, and possibly even get the police in order to capture him. Nothing could ruin her plans nothing… absolutely nothing.

"ROSE!"

Except that.

Gwenda turned around as the tiny Roselia stomped forwards, swinging her rose-covered arms as she marched through the grass. She didn't look particularly happy, and Gwenda could see that her bush had been completely destroyed and turned into twigs.

"Roselia Rose Rose Selia!" Roselia growled, stomping her foot against the ground. Gwenda didn't want the battle to be interrupted now, and had a feeling that the Roselia would end up ruining the battle.

"I am very sorry Roselia, Millicent did not mean to ruin your bush!" Gwenda said pleadingly. The Roselia gave Gwenda a slight nod before turning towards the Minder. The old man gave the small Grass type a strange look as she marched forwards, raising her roses up at him.

"ROSE ROSE ROSELIA ELIA ROSE SELIA ROSELIA!" The Roselia screeched, and suddenly her roses turned lime green and little projectiles were fired from them, splattering against the Minder.

"What is it, what do you want?" He growled, Geodude moving forwards to protect his trainer. Roselia scoffed and whacked him backwards with one of her roses and kept firing at the Minder.

"She is annoyed about her bush being destroyed," Gwenda said. "She must blame you and Skarmory for ruining it." The Minder scoffed and stared down at the Roselia, raising his cane to deflect the Pin Missiles coming his way.

"I do not care about the feelings of such a small, useless Pokemon," he laughed and swung his cane. Gwenda, Millicent and Scarlett gasped as Roselia was sent flying by the cane, and than the whip came crashing down and smashed her to the ground.

"YOU MONSTER!" Gwenda screamed, rushing forwards to tend to the injured Pokemon. Roselia had a gash across the middle of her body, and was covering it with her roses, a pained expression across her face. "How could you do such a thing?"

"Are you really going to risk this battle simply for a Roselia?" The Minder scoffed. "You can go and tend to this thing if you like, but I will kill you before you can take five steps. Your decision though." Gwenda did not want to lose this battle after coming so close and knew that the Minder was trying to manipulate her. But the Roselia was very hurt, and Gwenda didn't want her to suffer.

"Rose Rose," the Roselia suddenly send, forcing away Gwenda's grip and standing up. She raised her red rose to the sky and pointed her blue one forwards: the red one glowed green and the tip of the blue one formed a small green ball.

"Solarbeam!" Gwenda gasped, backing away as the powerful attack was formed.

"Miltank Mil Mil!" Millicent said, taking a step forwards as she continued to glow white, getting brighter and brighter. The Minder and Geodude were trapped, two strong attacks coming their way. Gwenda and Scarlett stepped backwards happily, the queue of ferry goers rushing away in fright.

"See you later," Gwenda called out to the Minder, who was staring at the attacks in shock. She was expecting him to wait and accept his fate, but the Minder leapt backwards behind a bush, leaving Geodude there.

"SELFDESTRUCT!" He shouted, just as the Solarbeam and Bide were unleashed. Gwenda simply gasped and grabbed Scarlett, leaping backwards behind a tree as Geodude blew himself up.

The three attacks collided upon each other, and the result was predictable.

A giant shock wave was released, bright light shining a blinding and fiery white. It was so strong that the trees shook violently, their branches being torn away and leaves burning up. The bushes were sent scattering, and Gwenda and Scarlett slumped against the tree, the heat burning through them. Screams sounded around them, and Gwenda clung desperately to Scarlett, memories flowing through her of screaming family members and intense heat wafting over her, the images of the burning house still burnt into her eyelids…

_Stop it! _Gwenda said, forcing the memories away as tears formed. By the time the nightmare was behind her, she realised that the shock wave had stopped though the screams continued. Gwenda opened her eyes to see the trees around her were burning and scorched, wild Pokemon such as Seedot and Zigzagoon fleeing the scene.

"MILLICENT, ROSELIA!" Gwenda yelled, rushing forwards as Scarlett fired a series of BubbleBeam at the trees. Millicent was slumped against a tree, still conscious but much weaker than she had been a few moments ago. But the field was destroyed: all grass had been burnt away for about a ten metre radius, and the ground had been severely cracked and damaged. The queue had been blown over, and people were screaming as their luggage had been damaged, friends and family injured, the ticket office on fire.

"Millicent, are you alright?" Gwenda asked, and the Miltank nodded, pointing instead towards something else. Gwenda placed Scarlett down and rushed towards Roselia, who was still scarred from the whip and was covered in ash, looking very weak. This was all Gwenda;s fault that she had been harmed, and her guilt was unbearable. She scooped the feeble, tiny thing up and her arms and glanced towards the bushes. The Minder was lying unconscious against a tree, his Geodude a few feet away having unleashed the main powerful force of this explosion.

"Millicent, Scarlett, make sure that those two do not move," Gwenda said, and the two Pokemon nodded, Scarlett still firing BubbleBeam at the various fires around the place. Gwenda nodded at them and began to run, heading towards the Pokemon Center in Mauville. She needed to heal Roselia, and than needed to find the police or some sort of authoritative figure that would come and get the Minder and lock him away for good.

It was time to end this, once and for all.


	23. Chapter Twenty: Message

**Second to last chapter of the year!**

**Chapter Twenty: Message**

All was quiet in Mauville City. Doctor Granger said that this usually happened around lunch time, when people stayed indoors and ate and then headed back into the hub of the city afterwards. It was the quietest time of the day, and it would be the best time to let them slip out without many people noticing.

"Take it easy and try to rest more," the kind doctor had said to Victoria and Andrew as he let them out of the door. "I don't want to see you back here anytime soon!" And he slipped a small bag into Andrew's hands as they left and gave them a final smile before shutting the door.

The peace and quiet was very refreshing, and Victoria took in the fresh sights of this city. The ground was all grassy and dirty, a much nicer change from the ports of Olivine and Slateport, and beautiful mountains and hills rose up on all sides. The buildings all seemed quite nice and homely, and Victoria thought this would be a nice place to settle down some day.

"Oh my," Andrew gasped, and Victoria turned to see he was staring into the bag from the doctor before he put it into the suitcase. "He's given us a bunch of supplies: medicine, berries, some fruit and bread, a leather pouch of water, Pokemon food and… what are these?" He pulled out a series of large black discs, and Victoria remembered seeing things like them back at the farm.

"I think they play music or something like that," Victoria suggested, but watched as a piece of white paper fluttered out from them. Both she and Andrew bent down to grab it, and their hands brushed against each other as they grabbed it. Victoria felt goosebumps up her arm and pulled away, watching as Andrew's face lit up a shade of red.

"It says that these are a new method of teaching Pokemon moves," Andrew said, reading the note quickly to cover up their moment. "I don't see how this would teach a Pokemon a move though… do you?" Victoria shrugged, not really paying attention as she stared across at Andrew, feeling a sensation stirring up in her heart. Andrew looked up to see why she wasn't responding and instead saw the look on her face. He slid the large records into the bag and put it and the suitcase down before walking forwards and wrapping his arms around her.

"What if people see?" Victoria whispered, glancing around nervously though still wearing her smile. Andrew simply smiled and planted his lips on hers, and they remained in this embrace for about ten seconds.

"Let them look. I would gladly go to jail if it means I got to kiss you first," he replied softly, and Victoria found herself feeling rather hot and waved herself with her fan, beginning to feel her face burning up. They kissed once again, and both of them would gladly stay like this for the rest of the day if they could, glad to be spending this time together.

However, it wasn't to last.

"VICTORIA, ANDREW!" The shout ripped through the silent city, and Victoria and Andrew broke apart as they turned around to see where Gwenda was. Victoria saw her running out of a building made from orange stone, fear covering her entire face, and Victoria knew something was wrong.

"Why aren't you at the ferry?" Victoria asked as Andrew packed the bag into the suitcase. Gwenda looked on the verge of tears and hugged Victoria first before she spoke, her body shaking.

"The Minder was there and he challenged me to a battle!" Gwenda explained, making Victoria gasp and Andrew leap to his feet. "He wasn't very good though and Millicent and Scarlett managed to defeat him, but than a Roselia came over, angry that her bush had been destroyed. The Minder struck her with his whip and there was an explosion of moves. I think he had been knocked out when I left, but I left Millicent and Scarlett to guard him and took the Roselia to the Pokemon Center," Gwenda explained quickly, and the tears suddenly began to fall. "I don't want… the Roselia… to die! The nurse said she is… she is… she is quite hurt, but will do her best… but I still don't want her … to die…," Gwenda sobbed, and Victoria gave her a soothing pat on the back whilst exchanging looks with Andrew.

"It's fine now, he can't hurt you," Victoria said. "You go back to the Roselia, we'll go and get the Minder and bring him to the police." Gwenda shook her head as she pulled away, wiping the tears away with the back of her hand.

"I cannot bear to look at that poor wounded Roselia, and the nurse said being there would only make things worse for me," she said. "I want to be there, I want to see how he looks when he realises he cannot win!" Victoria smiled slightly at her friend's strong words, but they all froze as screams suddenly sounded in the distance. Victoria and Gwenda both looked shocked, but Andrew suddenly pulled a Fast Ball out of his pocket and threw it.

"Electrike, lead the way!" He shouted, and Victoria watched in surprise as the yellow and green Pokemon she had tripped over materialized. Andrew looked up at her and pulled an apologetic face. "Sorry… I was focused on other things and forgot to say," he said, but Victoria shrugged.

"I'm more disappointed you didn't give him a nickname," she said, and Andrew managed a half smile, but they quickly got back into the seriousness of their situation. Electrike barked and quickly began rushing forwards, and the three began to run after, wondering what had happened since Gwenda had left the route behind…

* * *

><p>From a distance, you could tell things had changed.<p>

The fire continued to burn from the collapsed ticket building, and it seemed to be spreading to the surrounding bushes and trees. The queue of people had suddenly disappeared, though about a dozen figures were lying on the ground, surrounded by discarded luggage. The 118 Ferry had also arrived, dramatically smaller than the _Johto Jewel_ and its white paint had faded to an odd shade of yellow. Anyone walking past could tell that something had happened: you could feel it in the air, though the force behind it was not making himself known…

As the trio appeared, they instantly split up, silently seeming to decide on what they would do. Electrike was barking and run between the humans, and Victoria got down next to one woman lying face down in the grass. She bent her over, asking if she was alright, but gasped when she saw the wounds: a hideous, bloody gash running around her neck, the signs of being choked to death. Andrew was searching around for the Minder, Millicent and Scarlett, wondering if they remained in the area, while Gwenda was walking transfixed towards the ferry. It was strange how it hadn't been there before yet the people had, but now things had changed, and Gwenda had a feeling she knew why.

"The people, their on the boat!" She cried, turning to face Victoria and Andrew. "The Minder must have woken up and overpowered Millicent and Scarlett, than killed this people and forced the others onto the ferry."

"Why would he do that?" Victoria said, getting up from the choked woman and looking around. "Why would he kill this people and force them onto the boat? It doesn't seem like him," she said, and Gwenda nodded, trying to put the pieces together. But than she realised something and gasped, staring back at the ferry in horror.

"He put a bomb onto the ferry!" Gwenda cried, and Victoria gasped. Andrew began to run forwards with Electrike, heading towards the aging wooden jetty leading to the ferry, but he paused as something loud groaned next to him. Victoria gasped and rushed forwards towards Millicent, who was stumbling out from the bushes. She had a large gash across her back and along her face, and Victoria couldn't bare to see her Miltank like this and began to cry, giving Millicent a huge hug that she reciprocated.

"Where's Scarlett?" Gwenda cried, and Millicent pointed back to where she had come from. Gwenda sprinted forwards to find Scarlett stumbling forwards, a large crack in the middle of her jewel. Gwenda shrieked and picked her up, giving her a soothing hug. Andrew and Electrike moved away from the crying girls and turned towards the ferry.

"Electrike, we need to get in there and get those people out," Andrew explained. "I can't see the people around, so he has probably lit the fuse and gone away. Be ready to run if something goes wrong, alright?"

"Trike Trike!" Electrike said, and the two moved forwards.

"Be careful Andrew!" Victoria called through her tears. "It might be dangerous!" Andrew was going to respond, but a cold laugh suddenly erupted behind them, and they all froze in shock.

"Yes Andrew, it may just be too dangerous for you," the Minder snarled as he emerged from the ferry. His limp was much worse, even his cane couldn't help fix it, yet it didn't seem to bother him: his smile was wide and cruel as he moved forwards, a piece of rope trailing out from his hand holding his whip. "Your little black slut doesn't want you to die, so you better than her away before your all roasting!" The Minder's laugh got louder as he dropped the rope and focused on moving forwards, cane and whip in hand.

"ELECTRIKE ELEC LEC!" Electrike growled, and he raced forwards, glowing yellow. The Minder simply scoffed and smashed the whip into the ground, and Electrike froze and backed away from the flying leather.

"Why did you kill these people?" Andrew shouted, pointing to the victims behind them. "Why are you going to kill these innocent lives?" The Minder simply smiled wider as he moved forwards, thrashing his whip constantly against the ground. The sound seemed to hurt Millicent and Scarlett, and Victoria and Gwenda moved with them further away, Andrew slowly moving to them.

"After Gwenda beat me, it was most embarrassing and I felt bad about myself," the Minder explained as he approached the burning shack. "I couldn't let those people watching think I was weak, so decided to act. One of them approached me asking if I was alright, and I promptly beat him to death with my cane. I beat and strangled my way through the fleeing crowd, including harming those two Pokemon who tried to stop, and decided I should teach you three a lesson as well, especially if Gwenda was going to bring you others here to bring me in. So I forced the people onboard the ferry and arranged my explosives, and told them that if any of them tried to stop the fire, I would kill them all individually." The Minder laughed at the terrified looks on their faces and moved closer still to the shack, reaching out towards the burning pieces of wood.

"How is that going to teach us anything?" Andrew hissed, and the Minder looked up at him, his smile fading as a scowl formed on his face. He had a piece of wood in his hands and moved back towards the jetty, though continued to glare at Andrew.

"I am sending you a message," he hissed. "No matter how hard you try to stop me, no matter how hard you try to outsmart me or defeat me, I am going to win in the end. I will kill as many people as necessary to get to you three: I would even break little Judith Parrish's neck if she ever tried to get in the way. Your fate is mine, and I will get to you in the end, so you might as well give in now." The Minder had paused above his rope, holding the burning wood in his hands, a smile returning to his face, and Victoria realised what he was doing: they hand themselves over to him, or he would kill everyone on the boat.

"We are free from you and the Parrishs!" Andrew yelled, staring at the Minder and not at the wood. "We will escape you and you will never be able to catch us, and you will be the one that gets killed in the end!" The Minder nodding, closing his eyes, his smile fading slightly. Victoria wanted to yell out and make him stop, but his fingers were already slipping from the wood.

"How disappointing," he said, and dropped the wood. Victoria screamed as the rope caught alight and quickly began to burn. "It looks like there is even more blood on your hand Mr Kingston… how disappointing."

"RUN!" Andrew shouted, pushing the two girls backwards. Electrike fired a yellow ball of electricity towards the Minder, who simply pushed himself backwards into the water, a white flash erupting a moment later. Victoria wanted to go back, try and do something to save the people, but the rope had already burnt up into the ferry.

"We shouldn't have left them," Victoria hissed, giving Andrew a furious glare. He shot her back a rival look and kept on running, none of them looking back, none of them wanting to face the horror they left behind.

But they couldn't ignore the explosion.

They were close enough to Mauville City to not feel any shockwave or flying debris, but the sound would probably sound in Slateport. The three turned around to see a cloud of black and orange smoke rising up from the hull of the ferry. Already it was beginning to sink, the yellow frame tipping forwards into the water. Many people were trapped inside this giant sinking tomb, unable to escape and sentenced to a horrible death combining both fire and water. Victoria felt a tear rise up in her eyes, but Millicent was pulling on her, trying to get her to move.

"We have to get out of here, before anyone comes and starts asking questions," Andrew said. Victoria didn't want to listen to him but reluctantly turned around and began walking, one last image of the fast sinking ferry burnt into her eyes. However, they all quickly noticed that Gwenda wasn't moving: she had collapsed to the ground, watching the smoke rise into the air, her entire body shaking.

"Gwenda, we have to go!" Andrew shouted, but Gwenda didn't seem to hear him, her attention focused on the smoke. Andrew pulled her to her feet and backed away, but Gwenda simply tipped over backwards. He sighed and put an arm between hers and half dragged her forwards, Gwenda still turning back towards the ferry, which was now deep below the water's surface. Victoria, Millicent and Electrike reluctantly moved forwards, a loud siren sounding in the town, and they quickly disappeared before anyone could see them leaving the site, anyone could name them as being guilty in what just occurred.

Though Victoria was well aware of what monsters they truly were.

**Part Four begins next time!**


	24. Part Four: The Mirage Tower

**Part Four: The Mirage Tower**

Deep in the heart of Hoenn, a mystery lies beneath the sand.

Route 111 contains one of the few deserts in any of the major regions. In the middle of the route, which is otherwise quite a normal grassy route, a sandstorm constantly rages. The golden yellow flecks of sand that had been there for centuries are whirled and blown around by winds that ripple through the surrounding mountains and rages through the sand. The wind only blows in the desert, leaving the rest of the route untouched, but the desert section is made nightmarish to cross. A constant veil of sand impairs your vision, preventing anyone from seeing more than five feet around them at any given time. It is quite easy for people to be lost for the rest of their lives in the desert, straying in the wrong direction and unable to find their way to the grass. Only the best of hikers are able to navigate this area, and it is recommend you hire one if you plan on passing through alive and healthy.

The desert may seem awful and a place that should be avoided, but there is a secret within the desert. A secret that keeps drawing people towards it, in hopes that they will be able to unlock the secrets.

The Mirage Tower.

For years it was thought that the four storey tower made of compacted sand was simply a mirage, hence its names. However, in recent years, people have actually made their way into the tower, made their way to the top floors, only for the tower to fade away around them. Some people say it only appears to those that are worthy, others say it is due to movements in the earth or an act of Arceus, but no one has ever worked out why this tower suddenly appears and disappears.

But there was one rumour about this tower that people could agree on. All those that had entered had spoken of seeing rubies, sapphires and emeralds embedded in the walls, gold and silver trophies, piles of coins as high as the eye could see, though the tower had disappeared before they could take anything more than sketches of the beauty, the treasures buried beneath the sand. Anyone that heard of these treasures became entranced by the tales, and many lives were changed towards finding these rumoured treasures, hoping that they could possess them and unlock the true mysteries of the Mirage Tower.

**One more chapter left for the year!**


	25. Chapter Twenty One: Guilty

**Here it is: the last chapter of the year! **

**Chapter Twenty One: Guilty**

"We need to stop."

"No… we have to keep running."

"It is too hot to keep running! Doctor Granger said to take breaks."

"They could be following us!"

"Do you see anyone bloody following us?"

Andrew turned furiously around to face Victoria, but could see she had a point: the dirt covered road with only patches of grass behind them was empty of anything asides from bushes, trees and rocks. Victoria glared at him as she came to a stop, hands on her knees and taking deep breathes. Route 111 was mostly uphill, and after running it for nearly an hour, Victoria was ready to either rest or beat Andrew with the suitcase.

He had not stopped moving since the explosion around two hours ago. Andrew had wanted to get running straight away, head for the train at Lavaridge Town and leave Mauville behind, but Gwenda insisted on rescuing the Roselia. Andrew had protested, but Victoria sided with her best friend on this one, and they went to the Pokemon Center. Once the nurse and a special Pokemon Doctor had healed the wound, Gwenda captured the Roselia inside the Love Ball. After this, Gwenda slipped back into her catatonic state and did not say a word. Millicent, Scarlett and Electrike were healed during this time as well, with Millicent's skin allowing for faster healing and Scarlett receiving special cream for her jewel.

Once this was completed, Andrew set them off. The entire city had poured to the intersection to see what was going on, though Machamp and Vigoroth were being used to keep people backwards, including screaming, weeping friends and family of the victims. Victoria felt even worse about the incident as they slipped away to Route 111, Millicent having to carry Gwenda as she seemed unable to walk on her own.

The running was hard and painful, as Victoria was already tired and ready to collapse from her sufferings over the past few days. She knew that Andrew wanted them to keep moving, put as much distance from the city as possible in case someone had noticed them and began pointing fingers, but she couldn't bring herself to run away like this. Deep down, Victoria felt responsible for the bombing. They hadn't caused it or intended to cause it, and she wasn't sure if the Minder wouldn't have set off the bomb anyway, but Victoria couldn't help but feel this way. They had led to the _Johto Jewel_ being destroyed, and the other slaves back at the farm were undoubtedly being punished for their mistake: how many people would have to suffer before Victoria got what she wanted? Was she the most selfish person in the world for her actions?

_I must find get to the Star Festival and find Jirachi,_ Victoria thought determinedly. _Maybe then I can ease this guilt, try and reverse things, make them better… _Victoria's head was beginning to hurt and she collapsed down to the ground, reaching across to the suitcase and getting the water pouch out. She had several large drinks before giving it to Andrew and then over to Gwenda. Victoria was not sure what had caused Gwenda to shut down, but did not want to pressure her friend or try and force her into revealing something if she didn't want to.

"Alright, that was enough of a rest," Andrew said. "I agree that no one is following us, so let's just stick to a brisk walk." Victoria looked up at Andrew and felt something angry rise up in her that had been bothering her since they left, and she was beginning to notice a serious flaw in the man she loved: speed. It seemed that Andrew could not keep still for more than a minute, constantly trying to get them to move and put distance between the bad things. Victoria could have been have able to cope with this in small doses, but it seemed his mind moved too quickly as well. Andrew had not even paused to think of a way to outsmart the Minder, to get the flaming wood out of his hand's and save the people on the ferry – no, Andrew just had to shout back the first thing that came into his head. Victoria was not sure how this affected his feelings for him, but it was definitely going to play on her mind.

"We're tired, give us a minute," Victoria said in an almost hiss, and she moved backwards in the grass to be with Gwenda and Millicent. A slight smile came on Gwenda's face, and Millicent gave Victoria a gentle pat on the back. Andrew, however, looked rather annoyed with this decision.

"Victoria, we need to keep mov –,"

"No Andrew, we need to rest!" Victoria growled. "We are not going to be very useful if the Minder tracks us down and we're too weak to run away or command a move! Just sit down and be patient," she snapped, and angrily grabbed the suitcase and smashed it to the ground. When she looked up, Victoria could see hurt in his eyes, but he shook his head and sat down, staring in the direction they were meant to be heading.

"Mil Mil Miltank Tank Mil," Millicent said, and Victoria just shrugged.

"I will deal with him later," she said as she opened up the suitcase. Victoria began examining the records Doctor Granger had given, and saw the each one had a colour and a move written on it, with a short description and instructions of how to work it. They now had discs that could teach Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Surf, Brick Break, Energy Ball, Flamethrower, Protect, Psychic… they just kept going on!

"We are going to have to work which of these moves you can learn," Victoria told Millicent as she passed some of the records over. Millicent was entranced by these and kept searching through, getting more and more excited at each one she looked at. Gwenda slowly moved and began to examine some of the records as well, her eyes lighting up in excitement at the sight of them.

"We could teach some to Scarlett and Roselia as well," Victoria said softly, "or does Roselia have a nickname now?" Gwenda seemed almost stunned to be spoken to, but she nodded and pulled the Love Ball out, smiling as she stared down at it.

"I think I will call her Petal," Gwenda replied, a smile crossing her face for the time in a while. Victoria whispered Petal, and thought it was quite a nice name. Suddenly, the Love Ball crashed to the ground, and even Andrew turned as Gwenda suddenly began to sob. Victoria rushed forwards to give her a comforting hug, and Gwenda began to cry into her shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Victoria asked. "Are you crying about Petal's injury?" Gwenda shook her head and continued to cry, the sound echoing all around the valley. "Than what? You don't have to tell us, but we will be here for you if you do." Gwenda lifted her head up slightly and stared at Victoria with wet, tear filled eyes.

"It was my parents!" She cried, and broke down into another round of sobbing. Victoria almost froze in shock: Gwenda had never mentioned what had happened to her parents in the whole time they'd known each other, and always seized up when the subject came up. "I was outside! I watched as our house burnt to the ground, and there was nothing I could do… and there was nothing I could do on the _Jewel_ or with the ferry… I left them all there to die!" Gwenda fell back into Victoria's shoulder and continued to cry non stop for ten minutes. Andrew came out of his grump and passed a handkerchief to Victoria, who used it to wipe the tears away. It was a truly heart breaking sight, but no one said a word, Victoria simply calming shushing her while Millicent and her patted and stroked her back, all the while thinking of the horrible conditions of how they had each arrived her: Victoria's parents had their throats slit, Andrew's parents had been shot, Gwenda's parents burnt in their own home. Death had brought them all together, yet they seemed to be bringing more death with each action they took.

"It's been half an hour," Andrew whispered in Victoria's ear. "I know you want to comfort her, but…," he stopped there due to the look Victoria was giving him, and went to back away when Gwenda suddenly sat back up, sniffing and wiping her eyes.

"He's right, we should be going," she said.

"We don't have to Gwenda!" Victoria said, giving Andrew another foul look. "If you are sad or shaken up, don't feel pressured to leave." Gwenda simply shook her head and got to her feet, though her legs wobbled slightly.

"It is best if we keep walking," she said. "I can deal with my problems myself… I've been dealing with them myself for a while now, haven't I?" A smile crossed her face, and Victoria had to agree as she got to her feet and gave her friend another long hug. "It was just the shock of seeing the explosions… it brought back memories…"

"Its fine sweetie, it makes perfect sense," Victoria said, and they stayed in their hug for another minute. Millicent let out a soft moo and joined in on the hug, making the girls laugh, and even Andrew joined in after he put Petal's ball and the records back in the suitcase.

"Well, let's get going then!" Gwenda said with new found cheeriness. "The route ahead can't be that much worse, can it?"

It could.

After another twenty minutes of walking through the valley, the group reached the desert section. They froze upon arrival, and the suitcase fell from Andrew's hands in shock. The three slaves and Millicent simply stared at the path in front of them, not sure what to say, not sure what to do…

Sand. Sand everywhere. Everywhere they looked, sand was there. A curtain of the stuff blocked their way, and they all came to the same conclusion as they stared at it: it would be impossible to walk through. They would get lost in this new desert valley, and they would never make it to Lilycove.

They were trapped.

**Sorry it was not the most exciting ending to the year, but A Wish on Freedom shall return very early in January! Look out for the rest of Part Four and the final Part Five, where we will see if Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew's wishes come true or not. Thanks to all those people who read and reviewed and enjoyed this story over the year, and I hope you will enjoy what is still to come. **


	26. Chapter Twenty Two: Friend

**Happy New Year everyone: we are now 102 years past the adventures of our lovable trio! There is not a lot left of A Wish on Freedom, so I hope you all enjoy the last few months of them while you can before their adventures dry up. Onwards with Part Four! **

**Chapter Twenty Two: Friend **

"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!"

Victoria's scream echoed around the valley, and would surely attract the attention of anyone trying to follow them, but she simply didn't care at the moment as she marched towards a pile of rocks. Despite the fact the shoes she was wearing were rather flimsy and didn't offer much protection, Victoria angrily kicked out, sending the rocks sailing through the sky. Gwenda, Andrew and Millicent simply watched as she did this, not bothering to try and stop her as they could understand her pain.

They had gone over the map before and had noticed the desert on their map and had at the time been afraid it could prove a threat. However, there was no other route this way: Lavaridge Town, which was very nearby, was only accessible from this route by a steep mountain, and they would than have to climb another one to Mt Chimney and take a longer route to Fallarbor Town. Going through the desert was meant to be a lot quicker, and the group had decided that would be their back up route if the ferry fell through, thinking that just because it was sandy wouldn't mean it was particularly hazardous.

However, they hadn't expected there to be a constant storm raging across the sand. Even standing about thirty metres away they were being battered by flecks of sand that were being tossed into the air by the wind that continuously ripped through the valley. They could only see about half a metre into the desert, and even that was all taken up by sand. None of them were dressed properly for this: Victoria and Gwenda still wore dresses and Andrew's clothes were long and likely to drag. On top of that, it seemed you would need something to shield your eyes from the sand, and they only had the things in their suitcase. It would take a miracle they didn't have to cross the desert, so they were stuck.

A few seconds after kicking the rocks, Victoria stood in silence, watching the last of the rocks rolling before coming to a stop. She was tempted to run forwards and keep kicking them all, but her toes already hurt from that one kick and she knew it wouldn't help. However, as Victoria stood there staring viciously at the rocks as if it was all their fault this was happening to her, she began to feel tears building up. Before Victoria even knew it she had tipped forwards to the sand strewn ground, tears streaming down her face and the wretched sound of crying rising up. Victoria didn't want to cry, but she couldn't help herself as the crushing defeat that the desert bore washed over her. If they couldn't cross through the sandstorm, they couldn't make it to Lilycove City. All this time spent running and fighting and nearly getting killed in explosions all seemed worthless as she sat on the ground, her friends around her, their plans stopped simply due to sand.

Gwenda, Andrew and Millicent heard Victoria begin to cry, and Gwenda went to move and console her, but Andrew reached out and grabbed onto the sleeve of her dress, shaking his head.

"Why not?" Gwenda hissed so Victoria wouldn't hear, though her words were nearly lost in the roar from the sand.

"She needs to let it out, just leave her for a few minutes," Andrew said, eyeing Victoria carefully. They were all upset and had come to the same conclusion, but Andrew knew that he had to keep a clear head and focus on the path ahead. He didn't want them to give up after coming all this way, and thought it was best for Victoria to spend a few minutes crying while he thought of what they should do next. Andrew pushed all other thoughts from his head: the shock of both boats exploding, Victoria's illness, Gwenda's revelation about her family, the fact that the people on the boat might have stood a higher chance of surviving if he hadn't acted so quickly, his love for Victoria…

_Focus! _Andrew told himself, his mind beginning to stray towards the feelings stirring throughout his body. _Think… there has to be a way! _He reached into the suitcase and pulled the map out, which Millicent took one end of and peered over the surface with him. They had marked their two paths out before, and now that it seemed both were useless, Andrew began to search through for another route, focusing on their current area and wondering if there was another mountain path to get around the desert. Victoria continued to sob as he stared, and Gwenda felt terrible for leaving her friend like this. Making sure Andrew was still looking on the map, she leapt to her feet and scurried forwards.

"Oh Victoria, don't cry!" Gwenda said, getting on her knees and giving Victoria a big hug, glancing back and seeing Andrew was eyeing her angrily. "We'll find a way around this, don't worry!" She said reassuringly, but it didn't seem to help.

"How, there is no other way!" Victoria cried, tears streaming down her face and onto both her and Gwenda's dresses. "There is no way around this – it's all over! We escaped for nothing. We won't make it to Lilycove City and all because of some bloody sand!" Victoria continued to sob, and Gwenda and Andrew both wanted to offer reassuring words, but they couldn't help but agree with what she had said: there didn't appear to be another route to Lilycove, and their negativity would show through anything they tried to say to make her feel better.

They simply sat in silence, Andrew letting go of the map so it fluttered against Millicent, while Gwenda half heartedly held Victoria as she continued to sob. They all felt defeated and tired, and none of them had the strength to move from their current positions or to ignore the negativity in their minds. But none of them noticed the crunch of stones or the sound of footsteps, mostly due to the wind still roaring nearby, but something caught Millicent's eye as she began to adjust the map.

"Miltank Mil!" She exclaimed, pointing a hoof forwards. All eyes turned to where she was pointing, but as Andrew gasped and leapt to his feet and Gwenda clutched tighter to Victoria in fear, the figure approaching them laughed.

"Oh please, if I was here to kill you or rob you, you would know by now," the man said as he boomed with laughter. Andrew had been close to grabbing the Fast Ball containing his Electrike and Millicent had begun to rise, but it was clear that this man wasn't the Minder nor was here to harm them.

He was dressed like a lot of the hikers: long brown pants, a long sleeved green shirt, thick orange vest that looked hand knitted, faded, slightly torn hat that covered his greying black hair and had a pair of black glasses resting on a thick, beard covered face. The man appeared well built under his shirt, and carried a bag about thrice the size of their suitcase that was fit to bursting on his back as if it wasn't even there.

"The name is Jim," the hiker boomed once he had stopped laughing, which had been rather sudden. "I have been walking this area for many years now, and never have I seen two black girls out with a white boy in all my time here, especially not at your age, so would you mind telling me what your story is?" Victoria had stopped crying and began staring up at Jim with a sense of confusion: they had no idea who he was, and though he seemed friendly, she didn't want to tell him about why they were there. However, he was clearly dressed for travelling through the sandstorm, and Victoria noted his thick black boots and the way his glasses were tinted rather oddly and quite thick, possibly for protection. Should they reveal their story to this man simply to cross the desert?

"Well come on, I don't have all day!" Jim boomed, raising his glasses to reveal green eyes that were alive with curiosity as they darted between them all. Victoria and Gwenda exchanged equally nervous looks, neither of them quite sure what to say, but they were both relieved and shocked when Andrew stepped forwards.

"My name is Andrew, and these are my father's slaves, Victoria and Gwenda," he explained, both slowly and nervously, looking over at the two girls as if expecting them to get angry. While they weren't pleased to be marked the slaves, they knew it was a smart idea: Jim would most likely believe the story, and Andrew clearly had a lie working out. "My father owns a hotel in Johto, and I was getting bored and wanted to come on a holiday. He allowed me to travel around the bottom half of Hoenn while he and my mother went to Lilycove City. I was meant to meet them at Fallarbor Town to go with them back to Lilycove, but none of us knew about this sandstorm and I am not prepared to go through!"

"Oh dear, that is a problem," Jim said sympathetically, resting his glasses on the brim of his hat and giving Andrew a strong pat on the back. Andrew was fit and muscled from his days working Miltank Meadows, but that didn't stop the blow from nearly knocking him over. Victoria and Gwenda got to their feet as Jim surveyed them, clearly stunned by what he came across.

"Whose Miltank is that," he asked, "and why were your girls crying?"

"Millicent belongs to them, and they asked my father if they could bring her with them on the trip in case we met any danger," Andrew explained quickly, "and they were crying because my father can be quite brutal to the slaves that work in our hotel and I think that seeing as I can't get through, they are afraid they may get blamed for it." Jim seemed rather stunned, and Victoria and Gwenda quickly played along, staring sadly down at their feet.

"He has a nasty whip and cane, and knows just how to hurt us properly," Gwenda whined, and Victoria sobbed before putting her head on Gwenda's shoulder. They felt bad for manipulating the hiker, but they were all secretly pleased that they may have found a way to carry on. Jim was shaking his head and tutting, looking fairly unimpressed.

"I never approved of slavery," he told them. "I saw my neighbours beating their slave to death when I was just twelve, and it was a truly haunting image. I thought most slaves had been released, but it is fairly disappointing to see some are still being held!" Andrew looked shocked for a second: what if Jim was so against slavery that he would turn down any pleas for help?

"I am not bad to them!" He said quickly. "Millicent and I were just looking at the map to try and find an alternative route so we could meet them in time and no one would get punished!"

"I can see that you're a good boy," Jim boomed, giving Andrew another hefty pat on the back. "A nasty slave driver would be beating the girls for crying, not just sitting there with a Miltank looking like a fool!" The hiker burst into laughter, and Andrew began to play along as if it was a big joke. Victoria and Gwenda wanted to give the impression they were feeling better and began laughing loudly as well, and soon Millicent had joined in, leading to them all roaring with laughter with only one of it true.

"Listen here," Jim said, his laughter stopping suddenly and forced the others to control theirs, "I may have a proposition for you. There is no faster way to get to Fallarbor Town than through the desert, and you lot will need help, yes?" Andrew nodded, barely containing his excitement at the fact they may have found a way to continue their journey. "It just so happens that I _am _heading through to Fallarbor Town as well," Jim continued, and Victoria and Gwenda exchanged wide beams of excitement, "though I am making a detour on the way."

"Detour?" Andrew asked, his excitement wavering slightly as Jim beamed at them all: it seemed that he was going to take them through the desert, but there seemed to be some conditions they hadn't seen coming. Jim's smile grew so wide that his mouth seemed to disappear into his beard, and he leant in close with his eyes dancing with life. The three slaves and Millicent bent in, curious and worried at the same time about what his condition was going to be.

"How would you kids like to help me find some treasure?"


	27. Chapter Twenty Three: Agreement

**Chapter Twenty Three: Agreement**

"I'm sorry, but… treasure?" Andrew asked, sounding rather confused and exchanging looks with the girls and Millicent. They had spent about half a minute in silence after Jim's suggestion, and only now had any of them talked: they were willing to help him with anything to get through to the train station on the other side, but the idea of treasure sounded a bit… strange. However, at Andrew's question the hiker simply began to boom with laughter once more.

"Have you never heard?" Jim said, his laughter echoing around the valley, though this time the slaves didn't join in, still confused by the statement about treasure. "So, you haven't?" Jim said, his laughter cutting off suddenly once more. "Well, let me explain very quickly then: basically, there is an old tale that a tower constructed entirely of sand stands in the desert we about to embark into. It is called the Mirage Tower because for many years people thought it was simply a mirage, but recently hikers and adventurers like myself have actually managed to make it inside the tower and have brought back reports of jewels and gold located inside, but they have never been able to bring anything back before the tower collapses.

"Now, we can't be certain that this is true or not, but I want to take my own stab at finding out if it is or isn't," Jim continued to explain, his speech becoming faster and a hungry look appearing in his eyes. "And if I do find it, I will need help getting some of the treasure out. So, if you three accompany me into the desert and we get inside the Mirage Tower and gather together some treasure, I will take you to Fallarbor Town and even give you girls a share of it – enough to start your own lives outside of slavery," and Jim finished his speech with a wink. Victoria and Gwenda were stunned by this, and they didn't even have to fake excitement at the idea: after years of having only a few changes of clothes and mild personal possessions, in a few hours they could have gold of their very own.

In an instant, images flooded both of their heads: fantasies of them on boats like the _Johto Jewel _with butlers and servants in fancy attire serving them drinks and food on sparkling platters. Images of them riding personal steam engines to holiday homes on their own personal island, images of them buying weapons and getting Pokemon and storming Miltank Meadows, images of them building their own prison out of hardened gold to keep Edmund and the Minder trapped for eternity.

"I think we need a moment to discuss this," Andrew's voice said, and the two girls snapped out of their fantasies as he and Millicent walked quickly towards them. Jim nodded and stared towards the desert fondly, not noticing as Andrew looked sternly at the two of them and moved them aside. "Are you actually considering his offer?" He said.

"Of course!" Gwenda shrieked, but quickly silenced herself as Jim glanced curiously over. "He is offering us TREASURE!" She continued in a whisper. "Think of what we can do with all of that gold and jewellery! We could buy our own house here in Hoenn!"

"It is an amazing offer Andrew," Victoria added a little less hysterically than Gwenda. "Why shouldn't we accept it?"

"I thought it was obvious!" Andrew snapped. "We've travelled all this way to make it to Lilycove and we've been through so much, and it's the only reason we need to cross this bloody sandbox, but _your both _willing to throw it away for some money!"

"What makes you think we'll throw it away?" Victoria snapped back indignantly, annoyed at the idea they would end this quest simply for some gold. "We'll carry onto the Lilycove as planned!"

"Remember Jim thinks you're my slaves," Andrew hissed. "What would he think if he passes your share over and you continue to travel with me?"

"Mil Mil," Millicent said with a nod, but Gwenda scoffed.

"What makes you think he is going to Lilycove as well? We can make it look like we're doing something else and then sneak onboard, and even if he does go with us we can make up some excuse, like Victoria and I know a boat out of there or something," Gwenda explained like it was obvious. Victoria knew both of them had good points, though she did feel bad at the idea of scamming the friendly hiker when he was going to help them out. She noticed Jim kept glancing back towards them, and she knew it was time to make a decision.

"Alright, here's the plan," Victoria said in an authoritative tone, desperate to move on from this and get over with travelling through the sand, as well as stopping Andrew and Gwenda from getting at loggerheads again. "We'll help him with the treasure and get towards the station, but once there we'll tell him the truth: he will either feel sorry for us and give us all some gold, or will be annoyed and give us none, but either way we will have gotten through the desert."

"I wanted treasure," Gwenda said with a pout, earning her a whack from Millicent.

"If you want treasure and you don't get any, than wish for some from Jirachi, alright?" Victoria snapped. "However, my plan is final, alright?" And with that Victoria stood up straight and smiled warmly at them all before walking forwards. She wasn't going to waste time sitting on the edge of a sandstorm discussing wheter to become rich or not: they needed to get to Lilycove and fast, and they couldn't afford to waste any more time.

"I take it you have a decision?" Jim said brightly as Victoria walked over, though even though he was anti slave his eyes turned towards Andrew. Victoria looked back and saw he and Gwenda were also wearing beams, though their eyes showed their continuing anger towards each other.

"Yes, we have," Andrew said brightly, "and we kindly accept your offer: going on a treasure hunt does sound like a lot of fun!" Andrew added the last part in a rather posh voice that made Victoria snort, though Jim didn't notice in his own excitement.

"Excellent!" He boomed, and instantly dived into his bag. Once everyone was together and Andrew had hold of the suitcase, the hiker had pulled out several leather pouches of water, large things that looked like cheap masks with string tied around the back, a length of rope and bulky metal helmets.

"Now, I know this doesn't look particularly good, but it is rather necessary," Jim explained, slipping his own black glasses down back over his eyes. "These glasses were given to me by a friend at a science lab: they repel sand and protect your eyes and help with seeing ahead. They are the only pair I have and as I am leading the way, I will be wearing them. What I have here for you is something a lot of other people use: the masks will protect your face but gives eye, nose and mouth holes so you can still see and breathe, while the helmets will protect your ears and stop your hair from getting blown around. I'll hold one end of the rope and you three will hold on tightly so that you know where I am going, and the water is, well, water!" Jim began to laugh again at his joke, but the slaves all exchanged looks at the strange gear they had been given. It all looked a bit extravagant, and they all felt silly as the slid the masks on and put the bulky helmets on top. Instantly they could barely see or hear anything, and it was rather hard to breathe, but all three of them simply hoped it stayed to their task.

"See you soon Millicent," Victoria whispered, and brought the Miltank back whilst Jim was sorting the rope out for the other two. It was soon passed to her, and Victoria smiled through the mask as Jim tied the end of the rope around her waist.

"You two need to hold tightly onto the rope," Jim said, tying the other end around a strap of his bag, "because if you can't find me or Victoria, then you would have strayed too far off and we won't be able to find you, so just hang on tight." Andrew and Gwenda's faces were covered by the mask, but Victoria could see from the parts of their eyes she could see that they looked extremely nervous. "And Victoria," Jim continued, turning to her, "make sure you keep up with me: I don't want to be dragging you on your back through the sand. Now, are you all ready?"

"Yes," the three mumbled, feeling rather unenthusiastic about this as the mulled over his words and examined the rope between them and the strange things they were wearing: it was necessary to cross the desert, but they would rather feel reassured about it.

"Alright then: let's get going!" Jim said excitedly, his face so full of glee it reminded Victoria of the small children at the orphanage when they got their single Christmas gift. She felt rather better as they began to walk, knowing they were helping to make one man happy, and began to walk with pride as they began to step into the desert, thinking about how they were helping to change his life.

That pride disappeared the second they stepped into the desert.

One moment, Victoria's dress had only moved when she did, and she felt reasonably calm and happy. But stepping into the desert was truly terrible: only five steps in and suddenly Victoria's dress was blown to the sides and shooting up legs, exposing her skin beneath to the sand being blown around. The small particles felt like multiple tiny knives as they smacked into her legs and exposed parts of her arms, and Victoria had to clutch tightly onto her mask to stop particles getting in through her sides. Her limited vision caused by the mask suddenly turned into a swirling mass of dirty yellow, and Victoria couldn't even see Gwenda in front of her, only the rope tied around her waist. Her feet sank down in the sand and her clothes billowed violently.

_Well… this is just great_, Victoria thought bitterly to herself. She had half a mind to untie the rope and head backwards, but glancing back Victoria found she couldn't even see the rest of Route 111 they had just left. The rope pulled and Victoria began to turn with the movement of Jim's leadership, and she knew that if she had any hope of actually getting out of this hot, windy desert than she would have to stick with Jim: not just for her completing their task, but Victoria knew that if she split from the pack, she would get lost and be dead within days, and forced herself to keep on walking and hope for the best.

Little did Victoria know, death was closing in wheter she stuck with the group or not.

Back in the relative safety of Route 111, the Minder watched from the bushes as the slaves and Jim disappeared into the cloud of sand. A smile crept onto his face, glad that his arrival via teleportation had gone unnoticed, and even more pleased that his targets had entered the region's largest desert and their hopes all rested in one man. Lips curling up on his wizened face, the Minder began to walk forwards, slipping his own protective mask over his face, and wondering how if anyone would be able to hear them scream deep within the sand.


	28. Chapter Twenty Four: Sand

**Chapter Twenty Four: Sand**

"NEXT TIME SOMEONE OFFERS TO TAKE US THROUGH A DESERT, LET'S JUST CLIMB A MOUNTAIN, ALRIGHT?"

Victoria wanted to laugh, but she was afraid sand might go through and only managed a closed mouth chuckle that would have been lost in the wind. The only reason she'd heard Gwenda anyway was that they had bunched up when Jim stopped to check directions, but now Gwenda was a metre in front and Victoria couldn't hear her own footsteps, so how was Gwenda meant to hear her speak?

With no watch to tell the time and the sun hidden away, Victoria had no idea how long they had been walking but it felt like a very long time. Her legs were sore from all the walking they had done in recent days and trying to move through sand wasn't the most comfortable thing with aching muscles. It was also still hard to walk with her dress billowing up around her body, either creating drag or being blown around so that Victoria came close to tripping on many occasions. The rope was tight around her stomach as Jim moved quickly, pulling them all forwards and causing the coarse material to rub against her. Victoria wanted nothing more but to sit down and take off the uncomfortable mask and heavy helmet, but she knew that tredging constantly through the sand was going to bring them closer to the treasure and closer to getting to Lilycove, and simply grinned and beared it.

_It could be worse – we could still be back at Miltank Meadows being whipped and abused, _Victoria told herself as she stumbled over a hole in the sand. She decided to focus on the view around her, but a quick glance told Victoria that the desert view was the same as it was when she came in: yellow, brown and specked. The constant moving sand made a thick blanket that was hard to walk through let along see through, and Victoria only caught sight of Gwenda when the others slowed down, even though she was only a few metres in front. Occasionally Victoria caught sight of a large rock of strange, weed like plant if they came near, or another person travelling through the desert, but that was only for a few seconds before the sand swallowed them up once more.

_This is very boring, _Victoria thought to herself, trying to keep her mind occupied. _What to do, what to do… I could think about Lilycove… no, I have thought about too much. I just need to focus on this bloody desert for the time being, and once we're out of here and gotten Jim's darn treasure we can be free, and then I can focus on getting to Lilycove…_

_I wonder how Andrew and Gwenda are taking this? I can't hear anyone complaining, though this wind is too loud I am surprised I can hear myself think! Those two do need to stop squabbling though, it is beginning to get annoying. I'm pretty sure they were arguing and glaring about something when I was crying before – if they keep their disagreements up than I'll take the train to Lilycove without them! I don't need stress of their fighting added to the rest of it. I hope they don't put me in a situation where they seriously expect me to choose between them, because I can see that coming, and I am NOT sure what I would say to them..._

_I know Gwenda would expect me to choose her, and if things were different I would in a heartbeat. But… after all that has happened with Andrew… I know what I want, and I can't help but see myself in a few years time with Andrew by my side, possibly running our own farm with Millicent and his Electrike… a nicer place that Miltank Meadows, of course, with trees full of fruit and grounds bursting with vegetables, and many Miltank grazing the long green –_

_Focus Victoria! This isn't time to think of the future. I need to focus on the present and getting through this desert with only scratchy skin and nothing worse. The future comes after Lilycove, and Lilycove comes after the desert: when I am out of here, than I can think about Jirachi and making my wishes and dreams come true…._

Victoria was so lost in her internal discussion that she hadn't noticed that the others in front of her had stopped, and she walked straight into Gwenda and nearly knocked them all over. Gwenda looked back and hissed something in annoyance, but the wind tossed it aside and Victoria raised her hands in apology. For the first time since they started walking Victoria could see Andrew, and moving a few steps forwards revealed Jim standing perfectly still, staring directly in front of them, a map clasped in one hand and the other over his eyes.

"THE MIRAGE TOWER SHOULD BE AROUND HERE!" Jim shouted over the wind, and Victoria was surprised he didn't choke on the sand that must have been blown into his mouth. The three slaves looked around, trying to stare through the sand in front of them, but they still couldn't see more than a metre in front, let along see a giant tower made of sand.

"I CAN'T SEE ANYTHING," Gwenda shouted. "ARE YOU SURE THIS IS THE RIGHT PLACE?"

"I AM POSITIVE," Jim yelled, his voice sounding uncertain though. "TRY LOOKING HARDER, OR MAYBE WE SHOULD MOVE –,"

"I SEE IT!" Andrew shouted suddenly, and everyone turned. They couldn't see his face through the mask but he was radiating excitement and pointing directly ahead. "I CAN SEE THE TOWER!" Victoria turned around and tried squinting and adjusting her mask to see ahead, but she couldn't see anything through the sand and began to wonder if Andrew was just suffering some sand-related hallucination.

"NOTHING'S THERE," Jim yelled angrily, making Victoria slightly more relieved that she didn't just have poor eyesight, though was becoming more concerned for Andrew and his possible hallucinations. He let out an irritated growl and walked forwards, pointing ahead but staring at them.

"IT IS RIGHT HERE!" He cried, though still no one else could see it. "FOR GOD'S SAKES, I'LL PROVE IT!"

"ANDREW, WAIT!" Victoria screamed, but in a blink of her eyes Andrew was gone into the sand, leaving his part of the rope behind as well as the suitcase. Gwenda hastily picked it up as Victoria clutched her chest, beginning to get concerned. What if Andrew had just seen a mirage none of them had and had just run off into a sandstorm? He could get lost, never to be found again, and all because of her plan to go to Lilycove meaning they had to go through here.

_I just want this bloody tower to appear so we can leave this retched desert! _Victoria thought to herself as she shut her eyes, feeling a tear streaming down her cheek. _I just want to get out of here! _As she thought this, the wind made a strange noise like it was trying to blow through something heavy and Victoria felt the pull get stronger, and opened her eyes to see what was wrong.

And there was the Mirage Tower in front of her.

Victoria's jaw dropped as she stared at the structure. It was about four storeys high, with spaces for windows, a triangular roof with PokeBall designs etched into it, along with even more patterns and images appearing around the walls, and it was made entirely from sand. Victoria had no idea if it was even able to support people, but she knew she wanted to go in and marvel at the structure. Looking around, she saw that a patch of sand had been etched out in front of her leading towards the tower, and that Andrew was well ahead on his own path. Victoria hadn't even registered that the sand seemed to flow over the top of the path rather than straight through, and turned to the other two excitedly.

"Let's go!" Victoria said, stunned to find she didn't have to shout to hear herself anymore. However, Gwenda and Jim simply looked confused.

"YOUR NOT IMAGINING THINGS AS WELL, ARE YOU?" Gwenda shouted, sounding rather irritated, and Victoria noticed that Jim looked like he was about to set the sand on fire in his rage. Victoria couldn't understand why they couldn't see it and grabbed Gwenda's hand, pointing it forwards.

"Can you seriously not see it?" She said, wondering how the four storey building was somehow invisible to people. However, Gwenda's face lit up in shock, and Victoria knew that she could see it now. "Finally!" She cried and let go of her hand, making to walk towards Jim.

"WAIT – IT DISAPPEARED!" Gwenda shouted, following behind Victoria with the suitcase clanging into her legs. Victoria was surprised by this, but saw that Jim looked more delighted.

"NO ONE HAS EVER TRIED TO COME HERE IN A GROUP BEFORE!" He shouted. "MAYBE IT ONLY APPEARS TO SOME PEOPLE, BUT IT YOU HOLD OUR HANDS, THAN WE CAN SEE IT AS WELL!" Victoria didn't particularly want to spend the whole time holding their hands, but didn't let it show as she simply wanted to leave. Gwenda and Jim's hands clasped around hers, and the hiker's jaw dropped and his face lit up like a flame as he stared up at the Mirage Tower, an object of his dreams. Victoria's annoyance faded slightly as she saw how happy the tower was making Jim, though wondered why it hadn't appeared to either him or Gwenda, but that was something to worry about later.

"Let's get going!" Jim cried, walking straight forwards and towing Victoria and Gwenda behind. The two girls exchanged grins as they walked, knowing that soon they could take their stupid masks and helmets off and get being in the tower over with. Andrew was waving to them from an open entrance, and the trio rushed forwards to join him, eager to see what the Mirage Tower had to offer.

With all of them facing forwards, none of them noticed a well dressed man limping through the sand behind them, a torn and dirty white shirt wrapped around his face with only his spectacle covered eyes and nose uncovered. Beneath the sheet, the figure smiled as he saw the four entering the tower, and the Minder quickly began to follow.


	29. Chapter Twenty Five: Tower

**Chapter Twenty Five: Tower**

Stepping one foot inside the Mirage Tower, Victoria knew it would be the most elegant building she would ever step inside, even if it was made of sand.

Andrew had moved inside after waving to them, so Victoria, Gwenda and Jim moved under an open, decorated archway with block-like versions of Pokemon at the top, the sandstorm instantly entirely cut off. They had their hands held tightly, but Jim and Gwenda used their free ones to remove their helmets and masks and discard them by Andrew's, allowing them to take in the fully beauty of what they had entered as they removed Victoria.

Entering the tower revealed just more of it's surprising architecture: there was a fabulous mantelpiece of sand bricks with an empty space where a fire should be, surrounding by sand versions of paintings and picture frames that were made of more block-like Pokemon. The walls themselves were a work of art, with giant images of Pokemon and humans encircling around symbols and shapes: there was a full length Onix circling round the entire open space, giant Solrock and Lunatone dancing in the stars, humans bowing down to Dragon Pokemon Victoria had only heard of in legends. The floor was one giant mural of three circles set out like a triangle: one showing humans cultivating the land with Golem and Tauros, another showing a ship sailing alongside Wailord and Wailmer, with the last one showing two people watching a flock of some Flying type soaring into the clouds.

Victoria didn't know what it was about this place, as it was bare asides from the artwork, yet somehow is felt warm and wholesome, as if she should just settle down and live here. She never got a chance to spare a thought for her home life, but being here brought back memories of nights by the fireplace as her parents read stories to her, and fantasies of fantastic family meals with fictional family members joining them for a feast. Victoria had craved a family, homely environment during all her years on the farm, and this open space somehow brought back images.

"Isn't this place amazing," Gwenda said in awe, and almost stepped forwards to join Andrew in twirling around the room, taking in all the sights. But Jim suddenly pushed her back towards Victoria before leading them towards Andrew, roughly knocking them out of their fantasies.

"I have been warned that you shouldn't stay on the first floor too long," the hiker explained once they were all together. "As you can tell, it becomes fairly distracting and makes you forget about going up, allowing the tower to began to feel you and know you." Victoria wanted to keep staring, but the idea that the tower was somehow alive and absorbing in information about her sent a shiver down her spine: was it going to build a defence against them using these facts?

"Going up is all very well and good, but do you see a ladder or staircase anyway?" Andrew pointed out, and a quick look around revealed the room was indeed quite bare asides from its artwork.

"That's just part of the tricks," Jim said with a smile, and he led them towards the centre of the room. He pulled Andrew in with his free hand and bunched them all together. There was a sound almost like clicking and whirring, and the three slaves watched as the roof above shuddered. From between Solrock and Lunatone came a step, which began to spiral down and grow into a full staircase. Jim moved them aside as their way up came to a thud in front of them, looking as stable as the rest of the building.

"Just a little precaution, I am told, to keep certain people out," Jim said with a smile, and made to lead Gwenda and Victoria forwards. Andrew went to follow behind, but suddenly yelled out and everyone turned around. Victoria and Gwenda expected the worst, but simply saw that what looked like a large, clay coloured bug had its powerful jaws clenched around Andrew's foot.

"What is that?" Victoria asked as she dragged them back towards him.

"That's a Trapinch, a Ground type," Jim explained and bent down, pulling Victoria down as well. Andrew looked pained, and Gwenda couldn't help but let out a little giggle that earned her a steely look. "I've never heard of a Pokemon getting in here before, but oh well," Jim added, and used his rough, dirty free hand to prise the Trapinch's jaw apart.

"Thank god!" Andrew groaned and lifted his foot up to examine it, nearly kicking Jim as he went to stand back up. "Bloody thing!" He growled and turned to face the Trapinch, but it was backing away and quickly scuttled off when Andrew made to approach.

"Let's just keep moving up, shall we?" Jim said, passing it off as a mild inconvenience and led them all back towards the staircase, moving particularly quickly. Victoria went to ask Andrew how he was, but paused as something caught her eye: for a second, she thought something moved by the arch, but when she looked back it was gone. Thinking it was just a shadow moving in the sandstorm, she focused back on climbing.

"How did you let such a small Pokemon grab hold of you?" Gwenda continued to tease as Jim led them up to the next floor.

"Oh be quiet," Andrew snapped, looking furious. He then glanced over at Jim to make sure he wasn't looking before leaning in and going into a whisper. "This tower is really strange: I am beginning to regret coming here."

"I have to agree," Victoria hissed back, her lips barely moving. "I don't like the fact it seems to detect our presence, like there is some weird eyes peering at us through the sand. I really just want to get the hell out of here!"

"Alright everyone, we need to get moving!" Jim boomed, almost as if interrupting their conversation. The three shared one last concerned look about their current situation, each of them wondering if there was a way to get out, but they didn't want to share their thoughts until they had a better plan. Instead, they straightened up and began to look around the new floor.

This floor was a lot smaller space wise, with the area in the middle one giant block of sand, leaving them standing in a narrow hallway. There were windows here, each topped off with one of the block like Pokemon that none of them could yet decipher. The hallway branched off around the wall of sand in front of them, and Jim began to lead them forwards.

"Where is the way up on this floor?" Gwenda asked.

"We have to find it," Jim said, a twinkle in his eye and excitement running through his voice. Victoria wondered how long Jim had been planning to come to the Mirage Tower as he was acting quite literally like a small child that had come across a toy they had been searching after for years. Even though it was getting them across the desert, Victoria couldn't help but think how foolish it had been to follow a stranger into a sandstorm without fully knowing what was in store for them. The Mirage Tower was clearly designed to test those that came inside it, and Jim had invited them along for some reason they possibly wouldn't find out.

"How exactly do you find something made of sand amongst stuff made of sand?" Gwenda whinged. "That's like trying to find a very specific piece of hay in a haystack." Victoria and Andrew began to laugh but all the hiker gave them was a rather serious scowl.

"Now listen here," he said, pointing a thick finger at Gwenda. "We need to get to the treasure and find it before the tower decides it doesn't want us here and collapses around us, and even though we will fall onto sand, I can assure you that it will probably bloody hurt." Gwenda became as stiff as a board at this, staring at the finger as if it was a knife being shoved against her face. Victoria was sick of the confusing nature of things, but before she could talk Jim had begun dragging them off.

"Jim!" She said, trying to sound as tough as she could. "We need more of an explanation about things if we are going to be of any use to you, and you should let us send our Pokemon out to help as well." Victoria wasn't actually sure if their Pokemon would be of any use, but she thought that if things turned bad, at least there would be a few extra faces on their side. As Jim came to a stop and pondered things, Victoria stared at Gwenda and then into towards her pocket and mouthed 'Millicent'.

"Well, I _guess_ explaining some of these things could be useful," Jim said as Gwenda used her free hand to grab Millicent's Heavy Ball and passed it across to Andrew along with her Lure and Love Balls. "The ladder is hidden as part of the wall in order to test that we are worthy to go up," Jim explained, turning around and not noticing the suspicious fact that the two girls had PokeBalls. "If you don't find the ladder, you clearly are not meant to move upwards."

"That sounds fair," Victoria said. "Are there any challenges on the next floor?"

"You will find out when we get there," Jim said with a sly smile that worried Victoria. "Now, you can send your Pokemon out if you want, and then let's get moving!" Victoria and Gwenda weren't sure what they were meant to be looking for exactly as Jim dragged them forwards, but Gwenda moved her hand across the sandy bricks, trying to find something that would signal a ladder.

"If it was that obvious we could find it," Victoria said, and Gwenda nodded and decided to focus on staring. There were four clicks, and they looked back temporarily as Millicent, Scarlet, Petal and Electrike formed besides Andrew, all looking confused but he began to quickly explain things.

"Just tell them to look for a ladder, that's all they need to know!" Jim snapped, and Victoria and Gwenda exchanged another glance, wondering why Jim was being reluctant with dishing out his information. "Just bring yourself and those five Pokemon across and let's get started!"

"Wait, five Pokemon?" Victoria said, and looked back around: there was a Miltank, Staryu, Roselia and Electrike, and she didn't think there was a fifth until something called out behind Andrew.

"Tra Tra Pinch Pinch!" And they all looked as a Trapinch scuttled up towards them looking frightened.

"It's the one that bit me," Andrew said grumpily, but the Trapinch wasn't here to bite, instead looking behind and gesturing with his large head as he continued to jabber away.

"What is he on about?" Gwenda said. "It's almost as if something's frightened him, or maybe someone else is in the tower!" Just as Victoria remembered seeing the shadow moving outside and went to say it, a cold but familiar laugh rose up from behind them, and all eyes turned towards it.

"Great deduction skills Gwenda," the Minder laughed as he talk several steps forwards, his whip and cane at the ready. "It's just a pity you people never learn to not fall for my traps," and before they could say anything else, Victoria and Gwenda screamed as Skarmory shot around the corner, screeching metallicly as her twisted mouth opened and was aimed directly for the pair of them.


	30. Chapter Twenty Six: Weight

**Chapter Twenty Six: Weight**

The two girls dived to the ground as Skarmory shot towards them, and for a second Victoria was sure the metal beast was going to get to them. However, the screech turned into a gargle, and Victoria glanced up to see Jim's muscular hands were wrapped around the Steel type's throat. Skarmory's wings and sharp feet were flailing madly as she struggled to break free from Jim's grip, yet Victoria and Gwenda remained unharmed from the attack. It seemed they would be able to flee, and Gwenda made to leap up but a moment later let out a gasp of shock that made Victoria turn: one of the talons had struck her leg, leaving a cut near knee and causing blood to stream down her leg.

"Gwenda!" Victoria gasped. Jim, who had a look like Skarmory had personally insulted him, saw the blood beginning to come from Gwenda's leg and angrily threw the Skarmory aside, sending her crashing into the floor next to the Minder. The old man had simply watched as his Pokemon was attacked, a smile creeping onto his face as Jim leapt down and tore the bottom of Gwenda's dress off and began to wrap it around the wound.

"Well well children, it looks as if you have finally found someone competent to do all the little things for you," the Minder sneered. Victoria had several choice words to say to the slave driver, but was more concerned for Gwenda who looked shaken at her sudden injury.

"The fabric should help to steam the bleeding, but I am not a medic so I am not too sure," Jim said, not being reassuring in the silence. Gwenda simply nodded, looking fairly shaken as the blood was already staining the fabric. "Now, who exactly is this wrinkled old bugger?" Jim boomed, standing up and puffing out his chest as he stared down at the Minder.

"The more important question is," Andrew said quickly as he and the Pokemon struggled not to start attacking straight away, "how exactly do you keep on surviving things you've caused and keep on finding us?" The Minder let out a laugh as his Skarmory squawked behind him, and Victoria signalled for Jim to help drag Gwenda backwards.

"You people seem to keep forgetting I have a teleporting Pokemon on my hands," the old man laughed. "It is fairly easy for escaping from anything, and I have found it particularly handy. This time, I teleported into a house that belongs to a work friend of Edmund's who I knew is currently away on holiday. Unfortunately for you, it is right on the edge of town, giving me a perfect view of anyone going up Route 111." Victoria gasped and looked across at Andrew, who was beginning to look fairly angry: after he had made them run so fast to try and evade capture, they had ended up being spotted by the last person they wanted to see them.

"I managed to find a police officer and reported two black girls and one white boy I had seen running away from the scene," the Minder replied with a vicious smile. "They thanked me for my information, so I expect you to be on the lookout for the police from now on – they are going to be as eager to catch you as I am.

After that, it was easy to teleport to Lavaridge Town which I have visited many times in the pass for its lovely hot spas, and I was able to see you and overhear your conversation from your carrying voices. I have travelled through the desert before, and teleported down so that I could swiftly follow after," the Minder said, and as he finished talking laughter erupted from his mouth, echoing around the sandy hallway. "You three stick out like an Onix amongst Pidgey! Any thief want to steal from you could have you stripped of that suitcase and your Apricorn Balls within five minutes if they so pleased! And now I have you trapped in a building made of sand that is about as stable as this convoluted plan you came up when you all escaped!"

"Escaped?" Jim said, staring curiously down at his travelling comrades. "I thought you were meeting with Andrew's parents – what is going on?" Victoria turned bright red as the Minder continued to laugh, leaning on his cane to hold himself up. She knew that at some point their lie would get exposed, but being at the mercy of the Minder made things even worse.

"Parents – HA! The closest thing these vermin have seen to parents is the back end of my cane," the Minder said, laughing so hard that it turned to a coughing fit. Victoria could see Gwenda was on the verge of tears while Andrew looked murderous, their Pokemon wanting to act but not sure how to. But the look from Jim was the worst: it was a mixture of confusion and disappointment, the child-like excitement fading from his eyes. Victoria wanted to tell the Minder exactly what she thought of him, but as she struggled to find the words his coughing got worse.

"You're getting weak," Victoria whispered, an idea quickly forming in her head. She got to her feet and pointed accusingly at the Minder, who looked confused. "All this chasing after us isn't doing any wonders for your health. Have you looked in the mirror lately? You've got bruises and cuts all around your faces and arms, and I can only imagine what chasing us through deserts is doing to your leg. Tell me Minder, how much longer do you think you can chase after us? Working the farms has given us strength that your whipping will never give you: we can keep on fleeing long after your cold, shrivelled little heart has finally given up!" The Minder was taken aback by this, but Victoria knew her point was sitting in: Andrew had hit him with two buckets during their escape, Millicent's Bide had hit him on the _Johto Jewel_ and there had been the move explosion earlier that day. It was a miracle he was still able to walk, and Victoria's words seemed to be stirring something up.

"I may not be at my peak fitness," the old man said finally, his voice lacking its usual acid, "but I can still kill you before those dark little legs of yours have a chance to escape!" He was holding the whip tightly, and Victoria knew that when his confidence was down was the only way they could move.

"Attack him, go!" Victoria yelled, grabbing Gwenda by the shoulders and beginning to drag. The Minder raised the whip, but by this time the four Pokemon were all ready to move: Millicent started things off by charging forwards with a Zen Headbutt, and was joined by a Swift, Pin Missile and Spark. As Victoria rounded the corner, she watched as Millicent blasted the Minder's whip backwards as the other attacks slammed into Skarmory. Gwenda let out a groan and Victoria felt terrible after treating her friend like this.

"Don't worry, we'll be out of here soon," Victoria promised quickly as she looked towards the spiral staircase. But just as she wondered how to drag Gwenda down there, there was another shudder and suddenly the steps rose back up, leaving only smooth ground behind. "What the –,"

"GEOOOO!" Victoria screamed and turned around in time to see a Geodude leaping towards her. He clung onto her arm and began to pull her to the ground, and Victoria screamed for help. Andrew and the Trapinch rounded the corner and saw the struggle, just as the wall next to them whirred.

"TRAP!" The Trapinch cried and smashed his head into the ground, sending a shower of sand smashing into the Geodude. It had enough force to make him let go, and Andrew quickly grabbed his large head and threw the Pokemon behind. Petal and Electrike were suddenly sent flying as well, crashing into the wall and looking dazed as Millicent let out the loudest moo Victoria had ever heard.

"Are you alright?" Andrew asked, and Victoria nodded, though she looked at her arm and saw it was bright red and it hurt to move, leaving her to only wonder what Geodude might have done. "The Minder has released his Kadabra as well as there is a bit of a battle, Jim is going after him but is getting whipped back. You go up first and I'll help get Gwenda up, and will follow after, alright?"

"Sure," Victoria said, still in shock to really say anything. She was going to ask how she was meant to get up, but than Victoria remembered the second whirr and looked behind: only a few feet away from the where the spiral staircase had been was a ladder made of sand leading to a new hole in the ceiling. Despite what they wanted, the Mirage Tower seemed to want them to go up, and Victoria wondered if the slightly alive tower wanted to watch their battle continue.

With a slight groan, Victoria got to her feet and moved towards the ladder. A glance showed that Petal was consumed in a battle with Geodude, while Electrike had charged forwards and yellow flashes and squawks showed he was battling Skarmory. Victoria wondered how Millicent and Scarlett were doing, but Gwenda was losing blood and needed to get of the floor before a fight began. It was painful climbing the ladder with her sore arm, and Victoria was thankful for Andrew rushing over to give her a push, even though she began blushing furiously at his hands touching her thighs.

"Quickly, I can hear the Minder and Jim fighting!" Andrew said. He heaved Gwenda up by her arms, and Victoria was shocked to see blood had seeped through her dress, only the whites of her friends eyes showing through her half closed eyes. Victoria was quick to grab Gwenda's arms and Andrew gave a push as Victoria struggled to pull, but managed to get most of Gwenda's body through the hole and Andrew pushed her legs through.

"Find somewhere to hide, don't worry about us!" Andrew shouted, but there was an explosion that caused the tower to wobble in a way Victoria knew wasn't safe. She coughed as small yellow particles of sand rained down from above and she was blinded for a few seconds, but Victoria knew that she had to keep moving. It wasn't safe to stay near the ladder and she had to get Gwenda to a safe place to see what was wrong with her leg.

"Come on Gwenda, stay with me," Victoria said, giving her friend a little tap on the face to see how she was. Gwenda let out a groan that sounded almost like a gargle, but she remained in her position and didn't make anymore noise. Victoria quickly scanned the surroundings: she knew it was the third storey, leaving one more floor above them where the treasure presumably was. Based on what Jim had said, there was going to be another challenge on this floor to test them, and Victoria looked around for any clues, but the only thing different from the floor below was that some of the sand on this floor appeared to be a darker colour. More shouts and bangs came from below, but Victoria didn't have time to focus.

"Alright Gwenda, let's see what this floor has to offer," she said, getting to her feet and hooking her hands under Gwenda's shoulders. It didn't seem a particularly nice way of doing things, but Victoria was in a rush and she didn't want to push any more pressure of her friend's leg. Quickly she began to scuttle backwards, dragging Gwenda and trying to see if anything was behind her. The path was clear, but the sand beneath her feet felt stranger: it seemed to be less solid than that below, and felt to Victoria as if it was moving. She didn't want to worry about it, but just as Victoria slowed to turn a corner she felt a tearing sensation in her already sore arms and gasped.

"When did you get so heavy?" Victoria said with a slight laugh, and turned around to see why things had gotten harder. What she saw nearly made her drop Gwenda in shock: the ground Victoria had just walked on had disappeared, leaving Gwenda half on the edge of a more solid bit and half on the next floor. Petal had stopped battling in shock, but all it earned her was an easy target for Geodude to hit with a Rollout. Victoria was so surprised she had no idea what to do, but she quickly pulled herself together and began to heave Gwenda up, grabbing onto the side of her dress for an extra hold.

"What sort of tower is this," Victoria asked herself, rubbing her injured arm as Gwenda flopped fully onto the sand. Glancing down the sandy corridor as she caught her breath, Victoria began to notice something: there were yellow bits like the area they were currently on, and than there were darker areas like the one she had just run across and was now beginning to reform rapidly, as if sand was being poured in by an unknown source.

"Alright… this is going to be tricky," Victoria told herself, and stared down the hallway. It seemed much longer than she would have liked, and it was going to be a very long run to get across the sand. There were two areas before the end of the hallway, though the gap between them was too small for two people to sit on. Victoria wanted more time to think, but the tower swayed again as Millicent and Skarmory both cried out beneath them, and there were sounds coming a lot closer than before.

"I really wish we hadn't come in this bloody tower," Victoria complained to herself as she got to her feet. All she knew was that she was going to have to make it all the way to the other end without stopping, and dragging Gwenda wasn't going to achieve that. With a sigh and a rolling of eyes, Victoria bent down and heaved Gwenda up so both her arms were wrapped around Victoria's neck. Gwenda weighed more than Victoria but was at least shorter, but all Victoria knew was that she needed to start running.

"COME ON," she yelled to herself, taking off at a sprint. "LET'S FINISH THIS!" Her yell echoed around and was bound to attract attention, but Victoria didn't care as she ran with all her might. Her right arm was screaming with pain as she clung onto Gwenda, and the sand beneath her feet seemed to be slipping away, but Victoria didn't dare look in case it made her slow down.

But just as Victoria thought things were going well, two things happened that made her rethink that plan. Firstly, she ran onto the solid part but kept on running, and what seemed like a good idea ending up backfiring: the sudden change from collapsing ground to solid caused Victoria to start running off course, and she had no way of controlling herself as Gwenda's weight shifted. Just as Victoria began to gasp as she practically ran in a similar fashion to mad flailing across the sand as it collapsed more rapidly behind her, the second thing happened: with a jolt more powerful than before, the entire Mirage Tower swayed.

"AAAAARRRRGGGGHHH!" Victoria yelled as the force of the movement sent her flying to the side. If she crashed into the wall and bounced backwards, she would fall into the opening ground. Struggling to regain balance and stay on path, Victoria had to act quickly and did the only thing she knew how to do: she sprinted forwards and curved her back, making Gwenda's weight press down on her. But as sand slipped from her feet, Victoria pushed up with her arms and sent Gwenda sliding off. For a second Victoria thought it had backfired, therefore leaving Gwenda stranded with weight pressing down on her neck and back, but was relieved as her friend fell off with a grunt onto solid ground. Victoria was pleased, and for a moment thought she would make it across as well, but knew it wouldn't happen as a sensation rose up in her stomach.

"Damn," Victoria cried and jumped forwards, digging her fingers into the solid ground as the sand disappeared beneath her feet. The feeling of falling struck her stomach and feet, and Victoria tried not to glance down as shouts and explosions from colliding moves rose up from below. Her sore arm was screaming at her to let go, but Victoria clung on tightly and put most of the pressure on her left arm to get her to move up. But Victoria didn't have a good enough upper arm strength, and was tired from all their days walking and being on the run. For a moment, she was just tempted to let go and fall back into the battle and see where that took her…

"MILLLLLL!" A large hand smashed into Victoria's rear and tossed her upwards and forwards, leaving her to land right on the other side of Gwenda and roll forwards, nearly ending up on another area of loose sand.

"Thanks Millicent," Victoria called, and glance into the large hole showed the Miltank waving before turning back towards Skarmory as Scarlett and Electrike duelled with Kadabra alongside. Victoria felt bad for leaving them all below to battle, but she needed to keep moving and looked around the current area. The hallway was a lot darker, and Alaska realised there were no windows, simply two heavily decorated walls. But one thing that stood out was something standing in the middle: another sandy ladder, leading up to an even darker hole directly above it.

_The treasure room, _Victoria thought, and for a moment enjoyed more flashes of wealth and riches from taking the many jewels and money that resided inside. But she quickly snapped herself out of it as Gwenda let out a groan alongside. "Come on Gwenda, let's get moving," Victoria said. A shout rose up from the hole which still hadn't reformed yet, and then angry shouts from the end of the hallway that was followed up by Jim falling against the wall with a bloody hand. Victoria was shocked, and knew that they had to move quickly.

"Let's go Gwenda," Victoria said, lifting her friend back onto her back and nearly collapsing. She put a step forwards, excited to finally be near the treasure room, but screamed as she nearly toppled forwards: the second her foot touched the sand, it faded away, leaving a large hole far beneath. "Oh my god, this tower is such a nuisance!" Victoria fumed, on the verge of tears at how annoying and long this day was turning out to be. She wanted to collapse and give up, not even wanting to think about how to move across this sand. But just as Victoria was about to give up, her answer came in the form of a loud squawk.

"SKAAAAAR!" Victoria jumped as Skarmory was sent flying through the hole, urged on by some sort of combination move by Millicent and Scarlett, the latter still beating into the Armor Bird Pokemon. Victoria didn't want to go near Skarmory after Gwenda's horrifying injury, but she had an idea that just might work.

"SCARLETT!" Victoria yelled, and the Staryu flashed its jewel to signal it had heard. "Push Skarmory towards us and then around the corner, keep her upright!" Scarlett seemed to have heard as she continued spinning but did so in a way that pushed Skarmory forwards.

"Yuuuu!" Scarlett cried, and unleashed a series of golden stars that pushed Skarmory forwards. The Flying type was nearly unconscious and didn't notice the Swifts, nor when Victoria grabbed onto her neck with Gwenda once again around her neck. The weight unbalanced Skarmory and Scarlett had to fire more Swifts and even a BubbleBeam, leaving Victoria clinging desperately onto her sharp neck. Despite their efforts though, the metallic bird was beginning to sink and Victoria had to act fast: she pushed down on Skarmory and sent her towards the ground, and than used her body as a springboard that sent her towards the ladder.

Her sore arm grasped on as Skarmory hit the floor, sinking straight through and leaving nothing below the ladder. Scarlett propelled herself forwards as Victoria desperately and painfully began to drag herself and Gwenda's weight up the ladder. Victoria literally felt as if her arms were about to tear from their sockets, and had no idea why she was making herself enter the treasure room asides from it being the only safe place at the moment. But as the tower swayed again and nearly shook her off, something rolled near the hole: Victoria used her curiosity at what it was to fuel her, and pulled herself up into the open hole with a painful grunt.

It was in that moment that Victoria finally caught sight of Jim's goal: the treasure.


	31. Chapter Twenty Seven: Treasure

**Chapter Twenty Seven: Treasure**

In an instant, Victoria forgot about the pain in her right arm and the stress of the battle below. She even forgot her best friend was on her back and fighting for her life as blood poured from her leg. The only thing in Victoria's mind was the room she had just entered, and the fact that it seemed to have answers to all her problems.

All around her was treasures beyond her wildest imaginations. Light shone in and bounced off all of the treasure here, making the entire room shine. There were piles of jewels coloured blue, red, green, yellow, purple, orange and some that simply shone a dazzling white. Gold was piled all around in various forms: coins that could fit into a hand, varying sized blocks that would probably push Victoria's pain to its limit if she tried to hold, goblets, plates, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, pendants, staffs, all sorts of items with small jewels and designs encrusted into the gold. Piles of silver and bronze coins were stacked around as well, almost as if they had been tossed here. There were a large pile of rocks that Victoria faintly recognized from an old children's book as being evolutionary aides for Pokemon, alongside magnificently coloured phials and jugs and elegantly decorated pottery.

The treasure was not just contained to jewels and gold. Elegant dresses and smart suits were piled around gold encrusted suitcases, paintings and artwork that were of a quality high above anything Victoria had seen in the rest of the tower, pieces of wooden furniture set out like a family living room, each piece looking as if it had been hand crafted over hundreds of years. There was even a dark, leather bound book sitting on a sand pedestal that looked rather out of place, but Victoria wasn't in the mood to question. She simply stared around in awe as dozens of different coloured lights shone onto her skin: for several moments, Victoria became lost in the riches around her, sucked into the glamour and excitement that the jewellery and riches posed. All she wanted to do was grab of much of it as she could and jump out of the window onto the sandy desert below, ready to enjoy life for the first time in years.

"Yu Star Star!" A hurried cry snapped Victoria out of it as Scarlet pushed herself upwards into the treasure room using Swift. Victoria had forgotten all about Gwenda on her back, and was quick to spin around and place her friend on the ground, where golden and green glows struck her face.

"Gwenda, can you hear me?" Victoria said, slapping her friend's face again, but all that she got was a gargled groan that didn't sound healthy in the slightest. The tower swayed again, and there were shouts sounding a lot closer that made Victoria's happiness slip away entirely: Gwenda couldn't be left here, not when the battle was coming so close. Victoria quickly put her hands under Gwenda's shoulders, her entire back now screaming as she dragged her towards a leather couch near the book on the opposite side of the room. She heaved Gwenda on by herself as Scarlet fired a Swift down the ladder, earning a shout for her troubles.

"Nice work," Victoria called out as she lifted Gwenda's legs up. Gwenda groaned as her legs were lowered onto the couch, and Victoria felt bad as she pulled away the dressing Jim had put on. Blood had seeped through the cheap material and left it completely soaked, making Victoria retch but she held it in. However, she nearly couldn't contain herself as she looked down and saw Gwenda's cut: you could tell it had been deep, with dark red blood that was almost black continuing to spurt out and pour down her leg, the blood now reaching her heel and already staining the couch.

"Oh my god Gwenda," Victoria said, dropping the blood soaked material as she wiped away tears that were already building up. She wanted to give her friend a hug, but the tower suddenly swayed so violently that Victoria yelled out as she toppled backwards. Her outstretched arm whacked into the book and it landed heavily on her chest as her head narrowly avoided whacking into the leg of the table.

"Staryu Star Star Yu!" Scarlett cried, suddenly moving rapidly away from the hole. Victoria groaned as she looked up, moving the book that had fallen open off her chest and looking towards the hole. Petal's green spiked head was beginning to come up, with a voice that sounded like Jim's telling her to hurry up.

"Scarlett, go over there and help them and then try and bring Jim here, alright?" Victoria said, and Scarlett nodded and moved quickly back. Victoria got to her feet, picking the book up and making to place it back on its pedestal as she tried to think of how to save Gwenda. But just as the words 'stopping the blood' entered her mind, Victoria gasped a she saw them directly in front of her.

"What the…," Victoria murmured, placing the book on the table and staring down at the page in front of her. It took a moment to relocate it, but than she saw the words in front of her: _To stop the flow of blood from the wound, thou must place a Fire Stone on the cut and simply ask it to heal. _Victoria reread it several times, rather surprised by what it said: why did the Mirage Tower have a herbal remedy book deep within its treasure room? However, Gwenda let out a groan that chilled Victoria to her heart, and she knew she owed it to her friend to at least try it, knowing Gwenda would do the same for her.

Victoria quickly rushed back to near the ladder, having seen the evolutionary aides over there. Petal was now standing alongside Scarlet, and Millicent's head was beginning to poke through the hole. As Victoria searched through the stones to find the yellow one with a red gash that was a Fire Stone, she caught sight of Jim wandering around behind her: if he had been a child waiting for their presents before, he was now the child that had received their best gift ever and had no idea what to do. The large burly hiker simply stood in the middle of the room, mouth open and eyes wide, staring and turning around as the different lights reflected onto him.

"Don't you have any Pokemon Jim?" Victoria cried as she finally found the Fire Stone and snatched it up. The hiker didn't hear her, and Victoria had to run across and whack him on the shoulder. "Do you have any Pokemon to help fight?" Jim stared down at her as if she had just asked him for his brain, and Victoria sighed and ran back as Millicent climbed through the hole. "How did you make it through anyway?"

"After Skarmory fell through the ground, Millicent began to lift the Pokemon up through the hole," Jim explained as his excitement died down. "Andrew, his Electrike and the Trapinch got through as well, but I fought that old guy and managed to get across the sand and left him behind. Andrew is still fighting him and his Kadabra – I think the Geodude got knocked out or something."

"Roselia Ro Eli!" Petal cried proudly, and Victoria managed a short laugh. However, Gwenda was continuing to groan and Victoria knew she had to focus. She knew it would look silly to do this, but she placed the Fire Stone down on Gwenda's cut all the same. The stone felt like it was beginning to heat up, but Victoria didn't care as tears began to flow as she stared down at Gwenda's paling, pained face.

"Cut, stop!" Victoria said firmly. Several seconds passed and nothing happened. Victoria wondered if she had said the wrong thing, and could feel every eye staring curiously at her. She went to pull the stone away and wondered if these dresses would hold better when suddenly her hand felt like it was on fire: Victoria gasped and looked down to see yellow light shining through her fingers.

"Ooooowwwww," Gwenda suddenly moaned, and Victoria gasped, wondering how painful this spell was. Scarlet and Petal made to rush across, and Jim watched in shock. Victoria tried to pull the Fire Stone away as it got hotter, but it seemed to be stuck there, leaving Gwenda writhing in pain and shaking violently. Victoria continued to cry, mostly from shock at what was happening, no idea what to do. Just when it seemed things couldn't get any worse, a cry came up from the ladder.

"THE MINDER TELEPORTED, HE IS COMING UP THERE!" Andrew yelled, the suitcase being thrown up with Electrike and Trapinch clinging on. Millicent looked furiously, while Jim acted as if he had received a shock and bounded forwards, trying to decide what treasure to grab. Victoria didn't want Gwenda to be stuck bleeding on a couch when the Minder arrived, but was stunned to find her hand was cooling down, the light behind to stop. With a hard tug that made her sore arms scream, Victoria finally pulled the Fire Stone away. She wheeled around and grabbed one of the dresses from nearby and used it to wipe blood away from around the wound: no more was coming out, but it simply revealed the large cut that made Victoria retch again as she saw white that could only be bone deep within the injury.

"At least the bleeding stopped," Victoria reminded herself. Gwenda continued to groan, but her eyes were flickering more with life and Victoria beamed with relief as she through the stone away and pulled her friend into a hug.

"Wh-wh-what happened… where are we?" Gwenda groaned, but Victoria shushed her and simply held her tightly as Millicent, Scarlett and Petal rushed over.

"Its fine, it's just a cut, it's stopped bleeding," she told her reassuring. "We're in the treasure room now, and I found some weird spell that stopped the bleeding. Now we just need to get out of here before the Minder returns."

"We'll leave when we got what we came for," Jim suddenly boomed from across the room, and Victoria looked tearfully up to see he was grabbing one of the golden suitcases and flicking it open hurriedly, just as Andrew pulled himself through the hole to join them here. He froze in shock as he also took in the room around, and didn't notice as Victoria ran over, past Jim as he ran around examining the treasures, and pulled him into a hug.

"Oh – hey, what's wrong?" Andrew said in shock as he hugged her back but noticed the tears pouring down her face.

"I thought Gwenda was going to die," Victoria explained through sobs. "She is better now, but I thought this spell I was using to fix her was making her worse. I really don't like this tower Andrew, I really want to get out of here." Jim had run past them as he was trying to find things to grab and turned around as Andrew stroked Victoria's hair.

"As I said, we'll leave when I got what we came here for," the hiker explained, beginning to sound furious as he looked around and tried to find what to grab.

"You don't need to snap!" Andrew replied icily. "She is allowed to be a little distraught: her best friend nearly bled to death after Skarmory scratched her whilst you were strangling her!"

"If I hadn't strangled the bloody bird than it would have killed both your little slaves, if they really are _your _slaves!" Jim snapped back, turning around and pointing accusingly at them. "I don't know what you're playing out, but it doesn't take a genius to know part of your story is a complete lie! That Minder man clearly has some issue with you all and is willing to kill you, and I don't appreciate being tricked into guarding you from him!"

"We tricked _you_?" Victoria hissed. "You didn't tell us there were going to be any challenges here! A warning about the collapsing sand would have been handy – Gwenda and I could have fallen through and been killed in the crossfire!" Jim looked like he was going to say something, but simply groaned and lashed out at a pile of jewels, sending them scattering across the floor and making Electrike bare his teeth. Silence fell between them, and Victoria gave Andrew a tug that pulled him out of the angry glare he was giving Jim's back.

"Let's check on Gwenda," she whispered, and Andrew nodded and made to pick up the suitcase, causing Electrike and Trapinch to jump off. But as they made to turn, Victoria wondering how they would fix the wound with the Minder setting the police after them, there was a white flash. Millicent, Scarlett and Petal wheeled around as Gwenda tried to sit up, Jim dropped piles of jewels he had picked up and Andrew quickly pointed at the flash.

"Thunder Wave, go!" He yelled to Electrike. The green Electric type moved in to strike, but the white light was fading, revealing a large golden arm clutching a spoon, cutting through the air.

"ELEC!" Electrike yelled as he was sent flying across the room and crashed into a pile of golden objects. The light fully faded, revealing the Minder standing arm-in-arm with his Kadabra. Everyone froze, not sure what to say or do, and the Minder smiled widely as he nodded at his Kadabra. The spoon was raised, and Victoria and Gwenda screamed as they were all lifted up into the air with no clue what was going on.

"Kadabra Abara Ka!" Kadabra cried, and he swung his arm around. Everyone was suddenly spinning around the room, and Victoria could only scream as it seemed she and Andrew were going to head out the window, only to turn at the last second. The two lovers, Trapinch and the suitcase ended up crashing through a pile of jewels, while Jim crashed onto the table and Electrike hit the roof and landed with a thud alongside. Victoria didn't need any more pain through her body, but she heard Gwenda shriek in shock and looked up to see her friend clutching her leg as she lay atop a pile of silver and bronze coins. Millicent had crashed into a pile of jewels as well, Petal lying on top, while Scarlett had fallen into the pile of evolutionary stones.

"My my, this is fun," the Minder said with a laugh that echoed within the room. He turned around to face Victoria as Electrike stirred before them. Victoria didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing she was nearly beat, but her arms felt like they were about to fall off and her back hurt with every little movement she made. "Funny Victoria: I have been thinking about what you said earlier and how I possibly am becoming a lot weaker," the Minder said, "but than while I was bringing my Pokemon back after teleporting away, I realised that I have the advantage when it comes to defeating you. With a Psychic type, I can just stand back and let all the work be done for me." The Minder began to laugh once more, and Victoria and Andrew were hopeless as Kadabra began to lift them into the air. Gwenda and Jim were both groaning, and Millicent was struggling to get to her feet as a suit of armour Victoria hadn't seen in the shadows before had toppled onto her. They were all sitting ducks, none of them able to do anything against a Psychic type that could send them flying with a casual flick of the wrist.

But as Victoria and Andrew rose up to window height, the Minder's laughter pounding into their heads, there was a sudden clinking and shuffling behind them. Victoria strained to turn around, but her jaw dropped as a new Pokemon emerged from beneath the evolutionary stones: the Pokemon looked very similar to Staryu, except it was bigger, purple, and had more arms that made it looked like a magnificent twinkling star.

"Starmie Star Starmie," Scarlet said in a majestic voice that made the Minder turn around in shock. Gwenda was too in pain to notice her Pokemon's evolution, but Starmie didn't mind as a wispy purple and black ball formed in her new larger, more elegant jewel. It suddenly began to move forwards in quite an airy way, making sudden turns and spinning around for no apparent reason. But Kadabra had no idea what it was as it reached the Psi Pokemon and spun around his head, turning into a giant circular blur that eventually touched his head with a light flash. Victoria and Andrew cried out as they dropped to the ground, but the Minder remained speechless as Kadabra began to wobble around.

"He's been confused!" Andrew cried ecstatically, and Millicent and Petal cheered. Gwenda had finally noticed what was going on and her face lit up in delight.

"Great job Scarlet!" She yelled, and Victoria was stunned to see she had the leather bound book in her hands, waving it around in her delight. Scarlet gave a slight nod of her arms, but she continued to stare with her jewel towards the Minder as he remained shock at his loss of superiority.

"Me Star Star," Scarlet said, and everyone's delight turned to surprise as water rose up from beneath her, and that surprise turned to startled fleeing to higher ground as a large wave rose up.

"No, the treasure!" Jim screamed, but Scarlet ignored him and unleashed her Surf on the Minder and Kadabra. They became caught in swell, which was becoming rapidly dirty from the sand it was picking up, and the two were pushed across the room. Jim watched in horror as all of his gold and jewels, coins and objects, were all sent floating throughout the room, while Victoria, Andrew, Electrike and Trapinch scrambled onto the window ledges, balancing precariously over the side from falling.

"GWENDA!" Victoria shouted, and was pleased to see her friend, Millicent and Petal balancing on a second sofa, the water sloshing over the sides. Relieved, Victoria quickly turned to Andrew who was wearing a serious expression. "We need to move out of here before the Surf leaks into the other floors." Andrew shook his head, a smile creeping onto his face that made Victoria nervous.

"I think we need to make sure he doesn't stand a chance of following us again," Andrew said wit a smile. Victoria had no idea what he was doing, but her love picked up Electrike and held her over the water. "Spark, go!"

"Eleeeeeec Trike Trike!" Electrike exclaimed, glowing yellow and forming a ball of sparking electricity. The Minder was spinning around by the force of the Surf close to Gwenda, and once Electrike had located him he fired.

"This could go wrong Andrew: what if it hits Gwenda?" Victoria yelled. Andrew merely shrugged, but Victoria turned and watched in horror as the Spark shot across the water's surface and headed directly towards where the Minder was. It seemed for a second that Andrew's plan would work, but than the truth was revealed: the Minder had been holding on to a pile of jewels with his cane, but was losing his grip and became forced to let go. This left the Spark to head directly for the couch, and Victoria screamed out as she whacked Andrew on the arm.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" Gwenda screamed, and she held the water soaked leather book up in defence. The Spark crashed into it, and Victoria gasped, wondering if it would actually be able to hold. She clutched at her chest as the Spark exploded, simply leaving sparks flying from the book. Her relief ended after a moment and she looked back towards Andrew, ready to tell him off. But as the argument rose up, Gwenda screamed once more and Victoria nearly fall forwards into the water in surprise: the book was glowing a dazzling white, sparks flying from its surface as it opened in Gwenda's hands.

"Get rid of it!" Victoria yelled, but Gwenda simply shook her head as the dazzling light got brighter and wider.

"I CAN'T!" She screamed, and a second later yelled out as the entire room became engulfed in light, and Victoria and Andrew were left to shield their eyes, having no idea what was about to happen.

**Eagle-eyed GalacticVerse readers may be able to register where that book has been seen before ;) **


	32. Chapter Twenty Eight: Falling

**Chapter Twenty Eight: Falling**

Victoria had no idea what was happening, but the light shone through hands and her eyelids as she tried to shield it out, Gwenda's screams sounding all around them. The entire tower was shaking and swaying from it, and Victoria could feel the water being violently splashed up against her. Shielding from it was pointless, and she simply outstretched a hand to her right where Andrew had been, desperately needing some sort of comfort as energy seemed to flow past, threatening to knock them out of the window. Finally Victoria found comfort from his touch and their fingers interlocked, his presence reassuring and Victoria felt safer. She grasped onto the side of the wall next to her and held tightly on Andrew, bracing themselves against the wave trying to push them out.

The wave carried on for another minute, but they finally found relief as the light seemed to subside and the wave disappeared. Victoria waited a few moments in case something else happened, but finally opened her eyes, her hand still entwined with Andrew's. However, it looked as if nothing had ever happened: all the jewels and gold were in the same places, no one seemed to have been injured, and even the water remained, though it was beginning to go through the floor and the ladder hole. Victoria walked forwards, turning around and wondering what could have happened. Her eyes finally settled on Gwenda, who was still clutching the book and staring at it as if she was holding a cannonball. The book was still sparking and seemed to be jumping around, but otherwise nothing had happened.

"That was…. interesting," Gwenda said at last, letting the book fall from her fingers and staring around at the others with a look as if to ask them what had just happened. But Victoria had no idea what had happened, but she had a feeling there was more to the book than meets the eye: it had given her the strange curse that had stopped Gwenda's wound from bleeding, and now it had gone and acted out. Victoria glanced at Andrew, and he merely shrugged, just as confused as the rest of them were.

"Right, now that that is over, let's get some treasure!" Jim suddenly said, leaping to his feet and clapping to get attention. However, all he got from the slaves and the Pokemon was a steely glare. "That is the reason why we came here, and I am not going to let some glowing book ruin what I have been planning for a while!" And to prove his point, the hiker moved towards where the suitcases were and picked one up. It was at that moment, now that Victoria's mind was free of stress from Gwenda's injury, that two things struck her.

"The Minder isn't here!" Andrew said, voicing one of her realizations.

"We aren't holding hands anymore," Victoria added, and raised both hands to prove it. Gwenda and Jim looked at theirs as well, almost as if for the first time they had noticed this. "I thought you guys couldn't see without it… what happened?" There was a confused silence with a lot of exchanging of looks, but Jim simply tutted and threw a suitcase towards Gwenda, which Millicent caught before it actually hit her.

"Let's focus people!" He snapped. "I guess the Mirage Tower simply decided we were allowed to be in here once we had gotten inside, and the Minder man would have just been knocked down the ladder or out the window! Now that that is settled, let's just grab some treasure!"

"I really dislike this guy now," Victoria mumbled to Andrew as the hiker looked around for something to grab, and Andrew smiled. "I am going to check on Gwenda, will you be fine?"

"Of course," Andrew said, and suddenly pecked her on the cheek. It was unexpected for Victoria and sudden for Andrew, and both of them blushed in response. "I have these two on my side anyway." Electrike and Trapinch smiled as they wandered through the wet sand and Victoria gasped in shock.

"Did you catch Trapinch?" She asked, and Andrew nodded.

"I thought he would come in handy so I nabbed him during the battle," he explained.

"Trap Pinch Pinch Tra!" Trapinch said with a chomp of his jaw, and Victoria left the trio smiling as she moved across the ground. She touched the place where Andrew had kissed her and was wearing a goofy grin on her face.

"What happened?" Gwenda asked, staring at Victoria's overly cheerful look.

"Oh, nothing," Victoria said quickly, though Gwenda gave her a look that clearly said she didn't believe her, a look that Millicent copied perfectly. "Enough about me, how is your leg? Did that book hurt you in any way?" Gwenda shook her head, bending down and picking the leather book up.

"I don't know why it did that, but I think there is more to this book and I actually want to find out more," Gwenda said, making Victoria gasp. "I've always enjoyed reading, and I just want to see what else there is to this. And my leg is fine, even if that gash is still there: look, I can even stand on it!" Victoria was uncertain about Gwenda taking the book, but didn't want to argue and was happy for her friend as she shakily stood on her injured leg but managed to stay upright.

"That's amazing!" Victoria said with a smile, and as Scarlet made her way back towards them, Gwenda threw her arms around her friend. Victoria knew it was for saving her, but words weren't need and she hugged her back. They ignored grunts as Jim tried lifting heavy blocks of gold and simply enjoyed each other's touch.

"Mil Mil!" Millicent said with a sob, and the girls looked around as the Miltank joined in on the hug. They laughed as she squeezed them tightly, and suddenly Scarlet and Petal had joined in as well. The five all began to laugh, ignoring an angry glare from Jim as he finally heaved his gold into the suitcase.

"Come on, grab some treasure!" He shouted, restoring to grabbing a pile of jewels and coins from nearby and shoving them in. The girls didn't particularly want to, and Victoria was going to snap at him again when the tower suddenly swayed: it wasn't one of the little sways, or like the one when Victoria had fallen over. Everyone yelled out as they shot across the room, Andrew and his Pokemon becoming pressed against the wall. Everyone was shocked, but before they had time to register it they were being thrown back to the other side.

"What's happening?" Victoria shrieked, but her answer came from the tower: the sand in the middle of the room was beginning to sink away, much like sand moving through the hourglass. However, it didn't take long for them all to realise that the sand seemed to be emptying into the middle, an area none of them knew what was within as it had been walled off on the lower two floors, but no one wanted to find out.

"DON'T RUN!" Jim yelled as the others began to move. "WE NEED TO GRAB TREASURE!" And to emphasize his point, the hiker scooped up a pile of evolutionary stones and goblets in one movement. But the others ignored him as they quickly moved, Gwenda getting some support from Victoria, towards the ladder.

"Do you really want to die?" Andrew cried as sand began to trinkle down from the ceiling. Victoria didn't want to think of dying in this giant sandy tomb, and she moved quickly despite the sand moving against her. But a quick glance down the ladder revealed the ground hadn't reformed, instead showing the Minder and Kadabra lying unconscious on the second floor.

"Millicent, you jump down and you can catch Gwenda," Victoria said quickly, not wanting to fuss over anything. Millicent and Gwenda both nodded, and the Miltank jumped down with a loud moo and landed a few seconds later, the entire tower shaking. Victoria glanced around and saw the whole in the middle was getting bigger as the ceiling and walls dripped more sand.

"See you on the other side," Gwenda said, and she propelled herself forwards. Victoria hoped the catch ended well, and she, Scarlet and Petal sighed with relief as Millicent caught her, Gwenda giving a thumbs up.

"Alright then, whose next?" Victoria said as Andrew arrived with Electrike and Trapinch on the suitcase. The tower suddenly rumbled again, and a scream rose up in response to Victoria's question: Millicent and Gwenda were falling alongside the Minder and Kadabra, the floor having disappeared beneath them.

"NOOOO!" Victoria yelled, watching in horror as her friends fell. She felt tears brewing and had no idea what to do next, but the tower seemed to decide for them: the floor around the ladder was slipping away, and suddenly Petal was falling with a shout, her tiny body getting lost as sand began to pour dramatically.

"We need to jump, it's our only choice!" Andrew yelled. Victoria looked behind as the sand from the roof began to fall as if it was raining, and could see Jim running around the edges. Jumping wasn't ideal, but it was their only choice and Victoria nodded.

"Why not," she growled, but before she could move she screamed as the floor disappeared underneath her and Scarlet. The Starmie's sharp arms didn't look fun to bound into, so Victoria quickly stretched out and pulled her close in a way that wouldn't harm her and would mean that they at least had someone near them. Scarlet flashed her jewel to show it was alright, and the two began to fall.

The feeling was strange and almost made Victoria want to be sick: she could feel her stomach rising up to her heart and her heart rising up to her throat. Everything was a giant sand coloured blur, with the outside world becoming completely obscured. Victoria felt like a bag caught in the wind as she spun and twirled around, hair flying in many directions and her dress flying up around her arms – it was immensely uncomfortable, a process made no easier by the fact her fate at the bottom was uncertain and unknown.

But as Victoria fell, she began to realise there would be something to land on: the entire tower was collapsing, sending sand that fell with her and began to blind her. All the floors had gone away and the walls were all collapsing as well, leaving Victoria completely enclosed in sand. She had no idea when the end would come, and simply shut her eyes and waited for impact.

After a rushed minute of falling, Victoria suddenly landed on her back with a bone shaking thud. The ground was soft but it had been the impact from falling from such a height that rattled her body, leaving Victoria groaning: her arms alright felt dead and her back had nearly broken from carrying Gwenda, and now all her muscles felt saw and she had accidentally held Scarlet more tightly and could feel her back imprinting on her chest. There were several shouts all around, and Victoria realised she should see how everyone else was rather than pitying herself.

But once Victoria opened her eyes, something shocking came across her.

The sandstorm had stopped.

Victoria blinked several times to get the sand out of her eyes, and it was then that she realised the sky was above her the colour of ink with stars twinkling in a friendly way. She had no idea it was night, but as Victoria sat up she was left gobsmacked at how the desert had changed around them: there was wind whistling through, but there was no sand being blown by it. In fact, there was no extra sand around Victoria, no remnants of the supposedly collapsed Mirage Tower. But the strangest thing was the fact the sand was wet.

"What the hell happened," Victoria whispered to herself. All around her the sand seemed to be wet, almost as if a wave had swept through here. It fully revealed the rough, exposed cliffs that towered above them, the rock weathered and beaten from years of being blasted by sand and wind. The desert suddenly seemed so huge and so bare, the roar of the sand blowing past no longer there, the wind simply blowing eerily past.

"Victoria!" A voice cried out, and Victoria quickly wheeled around. Andrew was rushing forwards with the suitcase, Electrike and Trapinch running alongside. Jim was stirring nearby, and a shuffling noise made Victoria turn to see Gwenda and Millicent getting up as well, the two having landed a further distance away.

"Thank god everyone is alright!" Victoria said, and she outstretched her arms with Scarlett still clutched in one hand. Andrew, Gwenda and Millicent joined in, and a tiny squeak revealed Petal rushing towards them and they laughed as they pulled her in.

"What is going on here?" Andrew said after several moments of silence, staring around the bare desert around them. No Pokemon or people seemed to be stirring under the darkening sky asides from them. Things were strangely silent after all the excitement inside the tower, and it was relaxing to be in a cool breeze with the stars shining overhead. Victoria could imagine herself in different circumstances, lying down on a beach with Andrew on a night like this: it felt romantic and made her feel happy, and she almost didn't want to leave.

But than they heard the whistle.

It sounded too far away in the distance to truly tell what direction it had come from, but they all heard it: the shrill but far away noise sounded high above the wind, and each of them knew roughly what it belonged to and where it would have come from. Victoria wanted to stay here for longer, but they hadn't come all this way to stop in a wet desert. They needed to reach Fallarbor Town and catch the next train to Lilycove before they ran out of time.

"We need to get moving, now," Victoria said. "We wasted too much time here: we need to get to Fallarbor now!" Andrew and Gwenda both nodded seriously: they knew the importance of catching the train and how long they had been travelling, and they weren't going to give up now. Victoria felt rather inspired by all the serious expressions on their Pokemon's faces, and she felt happier than ever as they began to walk through the sand.

"Wait up!" A voice yelled. Everyone turned around as Jim ran over, though he didn't have his golden suitcase with him and it looked as if he had been crying. Victoria noted that Gwenda still had the leather book with her and wondered where the suitcase was. "I said I would escort you to Fallarbor, and if you will still let I want to come with you." The three slaves exchanged curious looks, wondering what to do, but another whistle cut through the air and there wasn't any time to waste.

"Fine, come, but you owe us an explanation I feel," Victoria said. The hiker nodded, and a few seconds later they were all running: despite their injuries and the fact they were all extremely tired, each of them wanted to get out of this desert and get to that train. Victoria didn't even talk; focused entirely on making her sore body run forwards. She had come all this way and wasn't going to stop now: she was going to reach Lilycove.

But as everyone left, no one spared a thought for the Minder. No one wondered what had happened to him or had bothered to look. If they had paused for just a second, then they would have seen a figure stir behind them moments after they left, and than seen the figure violently being to cough up water. But the figure watched them, and the figure began to grab handfuls of the sand and angrily throw them after the group.

"I will get you," the Minder hissed. "I will find a way to stop you, and we'll see whose going to be the fittest in the end Miss Freeman… we'll see."

**Part 4 shall conclude next time**


	33. Chapter Twenty Nine: Station

**Chapter Twenty Nine: Station**

The northern section of Route 111 had some truly breathtaking scenery. The cliffs that enclosed the route had not been as severely weathered as those within the wind struck desert, leaving them relatively whole pieces of natural artwork. Forests surrounded the steep area, providing homes for numerous Pokemon wishing to escape the harsh desert life that awaited them slightly south. It was a mix of green and brown from the cliffs to the trees and grass, and travelling through you wouldn't even think about the desert that was nearby.

However, as Victoria and the other ran, they hardly even noticed what was around.

The sound of the steam engines whistle was getting louder and louder with each footstep they took, and despite suffering from severe pain and tiredness, the group struggled on. Electrike and Petal led the way, being both agile and small and having an easy time getting up the steep part of Route 111 they hadn't seen coming. Andrew with the suitcase, Trapinch and Jim came up behind, while Victoria, Gwenda and Millicent holding Scarlett rushed behind. It was hard for Victoria and Gwenda to run, with Gwenda's injury still untreated and Victoria getting increasingly tired with each step, and they were forced to walk for a minute before running again, trying to catch their breathe but getting no time to.

They had no idea what the train timetable was as there hadn't been anything on it at Mauville (though they hadn't looked very hard in their rush to escape before being linked to the ferry explosion.) They didn't know if another train would come in one minute or one week, leaving the one they knew was arriving as their only possible option. Jim knew the way but he his back hurt from landing on the table and allowed Electrike and Petal to lead the way, knowing he would tell them which way to go when they needed it.

Victoria was tempted to collapse onto the ground and wait until morning came to worry about the train. It had been a long day since she had awoken at Doctor Granger's that morning, and she was very tempted to simply sleep and wait for her tired body to heal itself. They had been running for fifteen minutes as there was still a bit left to the route, and Victoria had no idea if this running would be worthwhile. The train had stopped whistling, so they had no idea of knowing if the train was still coming or if something had happened.

_Don't think so negatively, _Victoria snapped at herself. _We wouldn't have made it this far if we were negative about everything. We need to get to Lilycove, I need to get to Lilycove, and the only way that will happen is if the train is there, so let's just focus on that! _Victoria was proud at her mental pep talk and ran with new determination; only for it to disappear a few moments later as a cramp rose up her side and she struggled for breathe.

"I … just want… to die…," Gwenda wheezed alongside, clutching her head and wincing with pain every time her injured leg touched the ground. "Why can't… Andrew… and Jim… carry… us?"

"They… must be… tired… as well," Victoria replied, her head throbbing with every step. "If we don't… get to… that… station… I am… going… to die… myself!" Gwenda managed a weak smile, but gasped as water suddenly rushed over them. Victoria turned herself to get a faceful of a BubbleBeam shooting out of Scarlett.

"Mil Mil," Millicent said with a smile as she held Scarlett up and another BubbleBeam came out. Victoria and Gwenda's dresses already clung to them from sweat so the water was much more refreshing than annoying, giving them a new less and even allowing them to have a drink.

"Thank you!" Victoria said with a relieved smile. "I really… needed that," she added with a puff, clutching her side. She looked up to see that Electrike and Petal had disappeared from view, and Andrew and Jim were getting further ahead. There was no way Victoria and Gwenda could catch up by running and mental images of Andrew abandoning them and leaving herself entered her mind, terrifying her even though she knew that would never happen.

"We need to get up there and fast," Gwenda said, voicing Victoria's thoughts. Victoria merely nodded, trying to think of a possible way. Scarlett sent out more BubbleBeams, the water bursting across the back of their heads, and Victoria suddenly got an idea.

"Scarlett can use Surf!" Victoria said quickly. Gwenda looked confused and nodded, clearly wondering why this was being pointed out. "Think Gwenda: if Scarlett can produce a wave like she did at the Mirage Tower, than maybe we could hold onto her and she can carry us up towards the station, or at least until we get our breath back." Gwenda and Millicent both looked excited at this idea, and Scarlett flashed her jewel to show she was on board.

"Well than Scarlett," Gwenda said as she wrapped an arm around Millicent, Victoria grabbing onto the other, "let's use Surf!"

"Starmie Star," Scarlett said, her jewel flashing blue. Victoria clung on tightly as water erupted underneath, sending them all high up and Scarlett nudged forwards as if moving a boats controls, sending the wave speeding forwards. In five seconds they had covered more ground than they would if they had run for five minutes, and Victoria and Gwenda cheered as their hair was blown backwards and wind washed against them, taking the heat away with it. Up ahead Andrew and Jim turned around in shock at the sight of the sudden wave, but they were smiling by the time they were engulfed within the water, knowing it was a smart idea.

"Great work my friends!" Gwenda called to Victoria and Scarlett, and they all laughed as they moved between trees and past the cliffs. It felt like they were flying as the blue wave rose up, the moon sparkling in the reflection, and all the stress left them as they raced up the hill and Scarlett began to turn, sending them along another path.

Victoria finally was able to enjoy the sights, but was rather stunned by Route 113. The moon provided enough light for them to get a scale of what was in front of them: everything looked dead, with no trees or grass in sight and bare cliffs all around. Dull houses stuck out like oddly shaped rocks and the entire area seemed brown.

"What's up with this area?" Victoria shouted over the roar of the Surf, but Gwenda and Millicent were enjoying the rush of the water against their bodies to care. Electrike was up ahead with Petal on his back, standing next to a sign that seemed to point to the side. Victoria stared and saw a set of natural steps, leading up into the cliffs.

"Scarlett, stop here!" Victoria yelled. It was going to be disappointing to lose the cool water and wind blowing through their hair, but they couldn't arrive at the station with a giant wave behind them. Gwenda looked pouty as Scarlett pointed down, sending the Surf curving over and coming down near Electrike and Petal. Victoria put a foot out to steady herself, but misjudged the force of the Surf and was pulled away from Millicent, the remnants of the attack sending her rolling along the ground.

"VICTORIA!" Andrew shouted from afar, but Victoria was fine and merely coughed up a bit of water as she sat up. She looked up to find the others coming towards her, their footsteps not making any noise though as the Surf faded through the ground.

"I'm fine, I swear!" Victoria said, standing up with water dripping from her dress and hair, smiling to show she wasn't hurt. "The Surf was just what I needed to wake me up, especially before climbing those stairs. What is up with this area though? There's stuff under my feet but it doesn't seem to be grass."

"Its ash," Jim explained, scooping a handful up and showing it to them. "Mt Chimney is constantly spewing it out though scientists have never quite worked out the reason, asides from theories involving Groudon. It seems that quite a lot has been released: there are usually some signs of grass and the Pokemon that can live in this environment, but not today." As Jim spoke, the train's whistle sounded at its closest yet, and they were finally able to locate where it was coming from: directly ahead, up the stairs.

"I'd love to stay and chat about grass and ash, but I think we've got a train to catch," Gwenda said, and she took off first, hobbling ahead with the others taking off soon after. It was easy to catch up to her and Andrew and Jim gained ground once more, but despite feeling refreshed Victoria stayed by her friend, not wanting to leave her behind.

"ELEEEC!" Electrike yelled, sprinting ahead with Petal and Trapinch clinging on for dear life. He shot up the stairs and was halfway up before Jim or Andrew reached it, and had reached the top by the time Victoria and Gwenda made it

"Are you going to be alright?" Victoria asked, and Gwenda simply nodded, looking pained as she stepped up but managing to survive. Yellow sparks of electricity shot into the air high above, and as Victoria neared the top she began to hear voices. She was curious as to what was going on but waited at the top for Gwenda and Millicent who was still holding Scarlett. Once they were all up Victoria sprinted ahead, finding Andrew apologising to a guard a few feet away as Jim slammed money down at a ticket booth.

"This is extremely unorthodox!" The guard was huffing. Victoria wanted to stay and admire the station building alongside, which was painted a magnificent shade of blue and stood out from the natural rock that formed their area, but new they had to hurry on as the black tender engine leading the train of eleven coaches was sending grey smoke high into the night sky, clearly ready to leave.

"Thank you very much," Jim said to the young man at the ticket booth. Another boy barely older than them rushed forwards and opened a door to an empty compartment. Jim threw their suitcase in and leapt onboard, whilst Victoria smiled apologetically at the grumpy guard before helping Gwenda up. She climbed onboard herself, followed by Electrike and Millicent with their passengers, before Andrew leapt in as well. The guard slammed the door angrily and blew his own much quieter whistle. A second later the train gave a jerk forwards, and than slowly it began to move.

"I've never been in a train before! Well, not in a coach," Gwenda said excitedly as the station began to move away, her last comment making Jim give her a confused look. Victoria was excited about sitting on the luxury leather seats and wondered what was outside their compartment, but was so tired that she couldn't even bother. As the train gathered speed, causing the station to disappear and be replaced by rocks, all Victoria could do was sit back in her seat and shut her eyes, ready to sleep the pain of the day away. It had been one long day, and she was simply happy it was over and that they had all gotten out alive.

But Victoria was delighted at the fact that their next stop would be Lilycove, and her last thought before falling asleep was that their journey was nearly over.

* * *

><p>Pain and anger was all the Minder could think about.<p>

He had limped out of the desert about ten minutes after Scarlett had used Surf, meaning he saw no sign of them and had no idea how they had gotten away. The wind had began to dry the sand, the storm slowly rebuilding behind him and it was only by a miracle that he had gotten out in time.

The Minder had come off worse on this occasion. His cane was broken and he had spent nearly a minute coughing up water after getting hit by the surf. The old man had practically pulled himself out, and was now resting against a flat rock, listening as the train roared off into the distance, watching as the smoke rose above and wondered if the slaves were there, not that the Minder could do anything. All three of his Pokemon had fainted and he would have to trek to either Lavaridge or Fallarbor in order to heal them, meaning wasting a lot of time.

But as the Minder sat their, rage filled him. The slaves had escaped him for the second time that day and the fourth time overall, and they were making him look foolish and stupid. The Minder was supposed to strike fear into the hearts of those he met, but if he couldn't kill these three, what was left for him? The slaves at Miltank Meadows wouldn't fear him and Edmund would have no use for him, but wouldn't be able to simply let him leave in case he talked, meaning that if he was fired a death sentence would come with it.

There was only one possible option.

The next time the Minder saw them, he would simply have to kill them.

**That is the end of Part Four. Next time we reach our final part which we see how the train journey goes and ends up in Lilycove, but, as always, things won't go to plan ;)**


	34. Part Five: The Star Festival

**Part Five: The Star Festival**

The Star Festival was an institution in Lilycove City.

Every year the city and the surrounding areas would come together for the giant festival every May in honour of Jirachi. No matter what was happening at the time between certain businesses or individuals, all differences were put aside. Asides from essential places such as the Pokemon Center and the medical facilities, all buildings and businesses would close in honour of the occasion. The Lilycove Department Store, the largest in Hoenn, shut its doors and the retailers would spread out onto Main Street. They are joined by a number of stalls that come up just for events like this, selling special foods, potions and themed items all connected to the Star Festival.

It seemed like an odd thing to celebrate, but Lilycove City was one of the only places that was able to see an annual event that lit up the sky: a flash of white tearing through the night sky and shone as brightly as the sun. Many people said it was a shooting star or a meteorite, but most people liked to think that it was Jirachi flying overhead and wishing them luck. It was said that if you whispered a wish to yourself as the star shone overhead, something small and not to extravagant, than your wish was meant to come true.

While many people didn't believe it was a legendary Pokemon soaring above them, they did enjoy coming together and having a large celebration. People came from all of the regions to take part in the event to enjoy the food, buy the memorabilia and listen to the music and generally absorb in the atmosphere. And though many people wouldn't dare to admit it, many of them were there simply to see if their wishes could come true.


	35. Chapter Thirty: Train

**Chapter Thirty: Train**

When Victoria awoke with a jolt, she felt more relaxed than she had in days.

It took her a few moments for her vision to adjust and for her to work out where she was, but than it all came back to her as she saw Gwenda, Andrew and their Pokemon asleep throughout the compartment, almost in reverse: running up the stairs, riding the wave, falling through sand, Gwenda getting injured, finding Jim, the ferry exploding… yesterday had been a very long day, and Victoria was absolutely stunned that she had managed to survive. Even as she stretched Victoria felt pains through her arms from lugging Gwenda around and she could feel itchy from where the sand had gotten into her dress. It would take a while to recover from the pain, and Victoria was desperate to change clothes and wash the stink of sweat off her, but at the moment she was just amazed they had managed to escape.

Victoria stared out the window, wondering how far the train had travelled overnight and how much longer it would take until they reached Lilycove. However, it seemed that they were still in a mountainous area, with high cliffs brown cliffs surrounding them rather ominously. Victoria had hoped for a nice view but all see could see was the rocks and cliffs and found nothing particularly attractive about them. It was still dark around them but when Victoria pressed her face against the class she could see in the distance: yellow light shone in the direction they were going, showing that it must be morning, though Victoria had no method of telling the time. She also noticed that the train seemed to have stopped a large wooden tower, a pipe leading from it into the engine itself.

"What is that?" Victoria murmured aloud, moving back into her seat and flicking her dress to get sand out.

"I presume it is a water tower. It would be a reason why we stopped," a gruff voice said that stunned Victoria. She looked around to see Jim sitting opposite her, his eyes barely open but enough to stare across at her. Victoria had completely forgotten he had joined them, and while she recovered from the shock and smiled, she realized that they were going to have to tell him their back story at some point now that he was on the way to Lilycove with them.

"Good sleep?" The hiker asked, yawning and stretching himself.

"I feel a bit stiff from yesterday but I bet I could sleep for a few more hours until we reach Lilycove," Victoria said with a slight laugh. "That was a very long day yesterday and I must say that I am very glad it is over."

"I can imagine," Jim said with a nod. "The Mirage Tower didn't quite go how I would have liked it to, but you get that sometimes." He sighed and stared longingly out the windows, causing pity to stir up within Victoria's heart. She was still annoyed that he had slightly tricked them, but could understand that the hiker must have wanted to go into the sandy tower for ages, only to come out of with no treasure, injuries and a group of slaves that were lying to him. Victoria took the moment he spent looking out the window to examine her friends: Gwenda and Millicent were asleep side by side, the former with her injured leg up on the opposite seat next to Andrew. Petal, Electrike and Trapinch were together on the suitcase curled up and fast asleep, and Scarlett lay next to them, her jewel not saying if she was asleep or awake. Victoria was overwhelmed that they had all made it through the day without losing anyone, and knew that hopefully in a few hours or a day they would be able to enter Lilycove and have their wishes come true.

"I am sorry for tricking you," Jim said suddenly, and Victoria turned back around to see the hiker was still staring out the window, a mournful look on his face.

"You shouldn't be Jim, we did lie to you as well," Victoria pointed out, smiling warmly, but was stunned when Jim shook his head.

"Even if you had told me the truth, whatever your truth is, I probably still would have taken you," he explained. "I was told that the Mirage Tower doesn't let you in if it thinks you want the treasure. If you say you want to get in for some reason other than robbing it, than the tower will let you in. I knew that my vision would be clouded by the treasure and I needed someone to help lead me in." Victoria was surprised by this but could see some truth in it: Andrew hadn't really wanted to see the tower, only to help Jim so they could reach the station, while Victoria had first seen the tower after telling herself she wanted to get out o there. Gwenda had been obsessed with the idea of becoming rich that she must have joined Jim in not seeing the tower until Victoria led them in.

"But than you were able to let go of my hand," she said, wondering if the hiker had answers for this puzzle.

"When your friend showed up and went to attack you, my mind moved towards stopping him," Jim explained. "Attacking the Skarmory took my mind of treasure, meaning I could be inside without holding your hand, and than I became distracted by fighting him as well. I imagine Gwenda would have gone into shock and thought only about her pain, allowing her to stay in as well."

"That does make some sense," Victoria said with a nod.

"But again I am truly sorry," Jim added, finally turning towards her. "I knew that there were going to be tests that were meant to prevent people from stealing the treasure and I should have warned you about them, but I have wanted to get into the Mirage Tower for so long that it clouded my better judgement. I saw three people sitting hopelessly in front of me and I knew I could take advantage." Victoria was stunned by the emotion in the hiker's voice and knew he felt genuinely guilty about what he had done. She reached across and patted his hand softly, smiling warmly at him.

"Thank you for apologising," she whispered, "but you didn't take advantage of us. It was more we took advantage of you." Jim was stunned by this, and Victoria paused as she took a deep breath, readying herself to relive everything that had happened.

She began to explain their story: how they had been orphans that were tricked into becoming slaves for a cruel farmer, how Victoria had always wanted to see the Star Festival, how seeing a fellow slave getting beaten had pushed her over the edge. She explained her and Gwenda's dramatic escape that Andrew got caught up in, how they stole the suitcase and tickets and went onboard the _Johto Jewel_¸ only for the Minder to follow them there. She explained how a fight caused the ship to blow up, but the four that were behind it were the only ones to escape, and how the trio had been forced to walk towards Mauville but only for Victoria to become ill. She finally explained how Gwenda was forced into battle with the Minder at the ferry, eventually leading to more people being killed and sending them towards Route 111.

Jim's jaw dropped and eyes bulged throughout the story, clearly stunned by what he was being told. Victoria had no idea how he would react but knew that he deserved to know after the Minder following them nearly got him killed and lost his treasure. Once she explained up to the desert Victoria stopped, breathing deeply and tensing up as she waited to see how he would react.

"Well…," Jim said after nearly two minutes of silence, "that sounds a lot more dramatic than anything I've ever done!" Victoria was taken aback by this, having expected questions or some degree of shock or disgust. She was so surprised that she tipped her head back and laughed. Jim looked stunned as well, but Victoria simply continued to laugh, not sure if it was because she was tired or suffering from some sort of delusion, but for whatever reason she began to laugh. Once Jim had recovered from the shock he began laughing as well, and soon the noise echoed throughout their tiny compartment. Eyes began to flicker open, and soon everyone was staring at the two with confused looks.

"Would you mind keeping it down?" Gwenda grunted, rubbing her eyes and trying to adjust some of Millicent's body to make a pillow. Victoria and Jim managed to get control of themselves, but Victoria still sniggered into her dress as Andrew shot her a confused look.

"What?" She replied teasingly, only to send her into another fit of laughter. The Pokemon all grumbled and tried to get back to sleep, but the train suddenly jolted and Petal rolled over, whacking into Electrike and Trapinch.

"Looks like we're off again," Jim said, staring out through the window again as the rocks slowly began to move past. Victoria turned eagerly towards the window, excited to see they were finally off again and waiting to see the view. "So you are going to the Star Festival in Lilycove, yes?"

"Yes," Victoria replied with a mild glance back, but turned back again when she caught sight of the look Andrew was giving her. It seemed to be a mix of shock and anger, but Victoria wasn't sure what to make of it and wondered if he was just tired, but her attention turned away as, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that things had changed outside.

The rocks had temporarily slid aside, and the world seemed to have completely changed: Victoria watched in amazement as the brown turned to green, the rocks being replaced by trees that seemed to stretch as far as the eye could see. They had only been in the desert for a few hours but it felt to Victoria that she hadn't seen trees for weeks, and even though they were far away she couldn't help but see their beauty. What looked like flocks of Taillow and Swellow were soaring out through the branches whilst other Pokemon she couldn't make out frolicked around the trees and Victoria could imagine them being happy. She stared out into the distance and saw the green continued to stretch on, with hints of buildings, routes and water spread throughout. Victoria wasn't sure if her imagination was playing tricks on her, but as she squinted into the distance, she had a feeling that she could see a tall building near the horizon and knew it had to come from Lilycove City.

"Yes, we are," Victoria repeated, leaning back into her seat and smiling. Andrew still looked angry and Gwenda had fallen back asleep, but Victoria couldn't help but continue to smile and stare out at the trees: their journey was nearly over; they were nearly at Lilycove City.

Finally, Victoria could have her wishes.


	36. Chapter Thirty One: Bridge

**Chapter Thirty One: Bridge**

The train travelled for the rest of the day, stopping at two stations to collect passengers, once for more water and coal and was forced to halt when an injured Tropius came stuck along the tracks. Jim several workers and other men to heave the flying beast off the line using ropes and nearby trees, and Victoria and Gwenda watched the dramatic rescue take place. It felt as if they were fully engrossed in nature and out of the way of any drama, and the presence of helpful people and much less people giving them questioning looks made Victoria feel her happiest in weeks.

They were able to use the bathroom to wash the previous few days' dirt and grime off and Victoria and Gwenda put on clean peach dresses. There wasn't a lot to do after that, so they began to teach their Pokemon new moves from the TM's they had. Andrew had disappeared during the Tropius rescue, so Victoria went ahead and taught Electrike and Trapinch new moves as well. Jim provided input on which moves to use and shared some tips from Pokemon training he had learnt as a child, though explained he had passed his Golem on to a nephew and focused more on treasure hunting than Pokemon gathering.

Victoria was stunned that Jim hadn't overreacted to them being slaves, but she remembered how he had stated before the desert he wasn't a fan of slavery and presumed that he pitied them rather than be shocked at all that had happened. Jim ended up being quite nice now that things were settled between them, and he shared tales of treasures he had gone after but failed to find and humorous incidents that had happened in bars. Victoria and Gwenda had never been exposed to this kind of humour before and found it scandalous but hilarious, resorting to hysterical laughter that the Pokemon seemed to find confusing.

"I do hope you can make it to Lilycove in time for this festival," Jim said at one point when they weren't all laughing. "You all seem like good kids and, after the life you've been through; you deserve to have something good happen to you." Victoria was shocked to hear him say this and a glance showed Gwenda was equally as stunned. The hiker stretched his arms out and the two girls leaned in for a hug. Millicent seemed to think this was a good idea and joined in, and soon they were all hugging, causing Victoria to feel rather emotional.

"That was sweet of Jim," Gwenda said about ten minutes later as the girls walked down the hallway. It was getting late with a low orange sun shining through the compartment windows, and they were trying to find Andrew before they ordered food from the dining coach. They were at the very back of the train and were starting down this end first rather than working their way through the front coaches. "You wouldn't have expected to see this side of him, especially as he is a hiker." Victoria nodded along but remained silent, and it was only when Gwenda looked at her friend she saw she was crying. "Oh Victoria, what's wrong?"

"It… it's nothing," she insisted, wiping the tears away, but looked up to find Gwenda staring at her with a knowing look that saw through the lie. "Well… when Jim said we deserved it, I couldn't help but wonder… so many have died because of us: the cruise ship and the ferry, and I can't help but imagine what is happening at Miltank Meadows at the moment. I just… I know we _want_ it, but do we really deserve to have _our _wishes come true?"

"Victoria!" Gwenda gasped. "Don't say that! After all we've been through trying to get this far, I think we have done more than enough to deserve having our wishes come true. I mean, I try not to think about all the people that have died, but none of those deaths were directly our fault… right?" Victoria turned to see the happy smile had left her friend's face, replaced with a grim look, the question hanging in the air.

"I'm being silly!" Victoria said, wiping the tears away and forcing a smile. "I shouldn't have said anything, I am just overreacting! Come on: I'm hungry and we can't eat until we find Andrew." Gwenda nodded, putting a smile on as well, but neither girl admitted the terrible realization seeping through their minds. They quickly moved silently down the hallway, approaching the door at the end.

Stepping out onto the balcony suddenly made it seem as if they were truly on the train: the sway of the coach as it rattled along the tracks became more obvious, and the trees moving past seemed more blurred and to be moving away quicker. Gwenda winced as she put her injured leg out, having to grasp onto the railing: a doctor onboard had kindly stitched the wound together, but it didn't magically heal it or stop the pain, and trying to balance on it was hard. Victoria helped Gwenda move forwards, but was so focused on her friend and distracted by her moral questioning she didn't notice someone standing there.

"I wondered how long it would be until you came looking for me." Victoria looked up with a gasp, eyeing Andrew as he gave the two the briefest of glances before continuing to lean grouchily against the railing.

"Andrew, have you been out here all this time?" Victoria said, walking forwards as Gwenda limped behind. "Well, it is nearly time for dinner so you need to come back to the compartment with us if you want any food." Victoria was smiling warmly, but was stunned to see how furious Andrew looked. "Are you mad about something, is that why you're out here?" Andrew remained silent and stared back at the sunset. Victoria wanted to push on but knew it wouldn't amount to much, and merely shrugged at Gwenda. However, Gwenda looked just as grumpy as Andrew and moved forwards, kicking him in the thigh with her good leg.

"We've come looking for you when we could have just forgotten about you!" She snapped as Andrew stumbled. "I have a bad leg I shouldn't be walking on, but I have been walking to come looking for you, so why don't you show some gratitude and at least tell us why you won't come back?" Andrew clearly looked annoyed at being confronted and was rubbing the spot where he'd been kicked. Victoria seemed rather pleased that Gwenda had done the kicking and stared with an 'I'm waiting' look on her face.

"I should be the one that's annoyed!" Andrew snapped as the low sun cast half his face into semi darkness. "You shouldn't have told Jim about our past without consulting us first!"

"What?" Victoria gasped. "Why should I have to consult you all first?" However, she turned nervously to Gwenda, wondering if her friend would be angry, and felt relieved to see she was putting her anger towards Andrew.

"Jim can't be trusted!" Andrew snapped, pointing a finger towards Victoria. "He displayed that back at the Mirage Tower when he didn't warn us about –,"

"He explained that to me when you were asleep," Victoria explained, trying to keep her cool. "He just needed help getting inside the tower. Jim does feel guilty about it."

"I don't care what he is telling you, it could just be more lies!" Andrew hissed. "What's to make you think he won't just go to the police at the next station and tell them about the runaway slaves and try to get some money out of them in return?"

"That is absurd!" Gwenda hissed, looking outraged.

"You don't know that!" Andrew growled, taking a step towards them. He looked angrier than Victoria had ever seen and she felt rather scared, making her tempted to grab Gwenda and race back into the coach. "What if it was lies what he said about liking slaves in order to get us to help him with the Mirage Tower? We wouldn't help someone who went 'all black people need to be enslaved', would we? It was stupid to tell someone that could possibly sell us out, and I am not getting arrested or sent back to Johto when we've been through so much and come so close to the end because of a stupid mistake!" Victoria was shocked, feeling on the verge of tears: she had never expected Andrew to speak to her like this, and it made all the romantic feelings she felt for him begin to melt away. She didn't want to cry though but knew she had to do something, but was stunned when Gwenda suddenly slapped him across the cheek. Andrew stumbled and crashed into the railing, nearly falling over the edge.

"How dare you talk to us like that!" Gwenda said angrily. "This was meant to be our journey to Lilycove, not yours, and while we appreciate all your help we don't need you trying to control what happens! I trust Jim, and if Victoria trusts him as well, than she had every right to say whatever she wanted!" Victoria was shocked at Andrew lying on the metal floor, but her affection for him at the moment was at the same level for one of the dozens of Taillow flying high above them. She glared down at him as Andrew glared back up, not sure quite what to say, but knowing that she was hurt and wanted him to know that.

At that point, the train left solid earth and began to move across a bridge. This bridge connected the top of Hoenn together across a large river that came in from the ocean, travelled through Route 119 and came out into the oceans in the south. It was a giant wooden structure that stretched from one side of the river to the other, allowing the train to be suspended about a hundred metres into the air.

It was strange for the slaves to suddenly find the ground beneath them disappear, leaving them with only the tracks and the wood holding them up. Victoria couldn't help but be distracted though, staring down into the beautiful blue water flowing calmly beneath them, the sun's reflections shimmering on the moving blue. She could see Water Pokemon of all varieties swimming beneath, and her jaw dropped as a long, serpentine Pokemon dived out of the water, cream scales glowing in the single second it remained in the air. It was simply beautiful, and Victoria wanted to savour this memory rather than have it brought down by anger.

"Let's go," she said to Gwenda, turning away from Andrew so she didn't have to look at him. "I am feeling a bit hungry, aren't you?" Gwenda nodded, glaring back at Andrew as she turned around, wrapping her right arm around Victoria's left. Victoria hoped Andrew would see sense and come around, but she knew he was stubborn and seemed particularly angry at the moment for some reason. Maybe it was just a lack of sleep or feeling sore from the previous day, but whatever it was; Victoria just wanted to focus on the happy memory of the river and wondering what they would have for dinner.

However, dinner never came.

Victoria and Gwenda had barely stepped foot back into the coach when there was a violent jolt. They thought it was nothing, but this was followed by about three more that shook the entire train. Victoria screamed out as she fell sideways, crashing into the window of the door shoulder first. She gasped as pain shot through her arms, but suddenly realised there wasn't a grip on her left arm.

"GWENDA?" Victoria yelled, but cried out as their coach seemed to lift off the ground and jump to the right. Victoria was sent flying, sprawling over something at her feet and bumping her head on the door in front. Thankfully she wasn't knocked out, but as she landed Victoria felt her forehead and knew a bruise would be there. She then looked at her arm and saw the dress had been torn and there seemed to be blood, but the shattered window had only nicked her. Victoria clutched the wound to try and stop it bleeding before staring down at what she had tripped over.

"Gwenda!" She gasped, getting off her friend and spinning her over face first to examine her. It seemed Gwenda had been knocked out, a slight cut across her forehead suggesting she'd hit the edge. Victoria checked she was badly injured otherwise and, once she knew her friend was safe, got back to her feet, planning to find a doctor and learn what the jolts had been.

But as Victoria got to her feet, she found them sliding backwards. She screamed as she felt the entire coach tilting and turned around clutching onto the wall and staring out through the open door. Victoria instantly saw Andrew lying unconscious against the railing, and while she was shocked, Victoria saw something else that made her scream.

It seemed the jolt had been the coach leaving the tracks, and it was now off the rails and leaning over the edge. But there was no bridge or railing beneath them to catch: the coach was beginning to slide over the edge, and the only thing beneath them was the river, and Victoria knew enough to know that if they went down, they weren't coming back up.

**There will be a short break whilst I work on a longer story, but than Part Five will continue from this cliffhanger (pun intended :P). Please note that The GalacticVerse community has been started, which includes A Wish on Freedom, so there are a variety of other works that will explain certain parts of this story, such as that leather book Gwenda picked up from the Mirage Tower. **


	37. Chapter Thirty Two: Uphill

**A Wish on Freedom is back, and we are getting ever closer to the finale! There are only a few chapters left until the big finale, so hang in there until we finally reach that point! **

**Chapter Thirty Two: Uphill **

Victoria's heart pounded against her chest as she stared down at the valley below: despite all that had happened on their journey, she never failed to be frightened by what was put before them to deal with, and what could be more frightening and twisted than clinging for dear life onto the one thing that could soon become your coffin. The coach creaked as it swayed back and forth, the river and banks appearing to move than the coach itself. Victoria had no way of knowing what had happened to the train or what do: all she knew was that there were two unconscious figures around her and they had to leave before things became unstable.

However, Victoria didn't know how this could be achieved. Getting to the front of the coach was going to be like walking up a flat hill made of polished wood, and she would somehow have to drag her two friends up as well. She could always get into one of the compartments, but, again, Victoria had no way of knowing what state they would be in. She also had no idea how she was supposed to get to Andrew, whose arms and legs had fallen between the gaps in the railing and it would be too risky to grab him. There were too many questions and no ideas or solutions, and Victoria began to freak out as the coach continued to sway, dust trickling away beneath them.

_Focus! _Victoria told herself as she stared desperately between compartments, Gwenda, Andrew and the entrance up ahead. _There has to be a way out of here: calm down and try and think rationally! _Victoria took several deep and quick breathes as she glanced around, trying to think of a way to get out of this situation. There were several compartments nearby that they could get to, and Victoria sighed with relief as she realised something: no one had entered into the corridor to try and escape, meaning that people were either unconscious or could easily escape through their windows or side doors.

"Perfect!" Victoria said, hoping that it was the latter option. Her heart and mind were still racing, but she wasn't going to linger around and wait for the coach to fall down below. She had learnt that moving quickly, sensibly and calmly was the best way to achieve this in these situations, and the same had to be said for today.

Victoria pulled herself up, arms screaming with pain, until she was leaning against a wall that formed part of this coaches bathroom, which extended out further then the compartments. Leaning against it for support, she leaned across and hooked Gwenda around the middle with her foot. It wasn't the most comfortable way of doing things, but Victoria had to move quickly and couldn't help Gwenda any other way. Her entire body still hurt from yesterday, but Victoria tried her best to heave her friend around until she was able to bend down and reach her.

_Damn_, Victoria cursed as she leaned down and grabbed Gwenda's shoulders, her shoulders and arms feeling like they were about to shatter, not helped by the blood trickling down from her wound, no longer being prevented as Victoria's hands were needed elsewhere. Gwenda's dress began to get flecked with blood as it dripped down, sickening Victoria slightly, but she forced herself to focus on the task at hand and struggled to pull Gwenda up and stay safe at the same time. The coach continued to creak and Victoria nearly let go of Gwenda as she felt it slide forwards a little bit, and for a few moments paused in fear at the creaking.

_Come on, focus! _She told herself firmly, and, with one last great heave, managed to get Gwenda up to her level. Her friend was groaning and stirring slightly, and the cut on her head looked like it could get worse very quickly. Victoria forced herself not to focus on it and pushed herself to her feet, wobbly slightly at the unstable ground she was on. The nearest door was only a few feet away, and Victoria was relieved that it opened easily, hopefully implying that its occupants hadn't been trapped inside.

Victoria peered in once the door had swung open, looking around at the suitcase, plates of food and a board game that had become scattered around from the derailment. However, the door leading out of the carriage remained closed: the occupants had either teleported away like the Minder usually did or hadn't been in the room at the time of the crash.

"No!" Victoria gasped, now not sure what she was going to do. She had hoped to have the door open and easily drag Gwenda and Andrew out before leaving herself, but now she couldn't be sure. In an ideal situation, Victoria could have easily moved through the compartment and checked, but as the coach continued to sway and creak, she realised that she would have to rescue Andrew first.

"Sorry Gwenda, I'll be back in a minute," Victoria whispered, heaving Gwenda up and sliding her into the carriage with more strain on her arms. Gwenda thumped against the wall under the seat and Victoria could only hope she would be alright. But as she turned to leave, shouts began to sound from all around. Victoria turned around in hope and relief, glad that someone could potentially come to her rescue and aide her rescue attempts, but saw that the shouts were coming through a crack in the window, not from inside the coach itself. It wasn't as good, but Victoria did find another solution for it: she searched around the upturned suitcase on the floor, and grasped the first heavy object she could find. It turned out to be a box of empty Apricorn Balls, and though they weren't as ideal as something larger, Victoria knew she didn't have the strength to throw anything heavier even if she found it.

"Alright, here we go," she mumbled, and threw one towards the window. It didn't fully shatter it, only making the cracks go bigger, so Victoria grabbed another handful and threw them. The next two didn't do anything, but finally the fourth ball she threw shattered the class. Victoria was relieved, but the sound wasn't as loud as she would have hoped for to get attention, and threw the last three in the box in hopes that someone saw them. The coach continued to sway and slid forwards once more, nearly making Victoria lose her footing, and she knew she had to get to Andrew before the coach took him away, leaving her no time to check if her plan had worked.

_But how am I supposed to rescue him?_ Victoria asked herself, changing from supportive and encouraging to now questioning herself. But she turned and stared down through the open door before her, down to where Andrew lay on a few pieces of metal that were saving his life. How was Victoria supposed to get down there and save him? There was nothing to hold onto and the slope was difficult to control: horrible mental images of slipping and falling into the ravine below flashed through her mind, and Victoria seized up in fright. There was little way she could get down there without endangering herself and ultimately failing, and her fear and rapid, uneasy breathing began to come back. Escaping this situation seemed impossible, and Victoria was on the verge of tears as she leaned back into the compartment, clutching her head in agony as she tried to think of what to do.

"What's this?" Victoria asked herself suddenly, her thoughts temporarily distracted as she felt something soft beneath her head when she thought she'd leant against the suitcase. She turned and looked down, surprised to find it was a bundled up sheet. Whoever stayed here seemed to have come prepared for several sleeps, and Victoria could see they had brought their own pillows and a robe with them. But Victoria's attention was only on the sheet, and she had an idea of just how to use it.

Grabbing it and sliding down to the bathroom wall, Victoria leaned over and faced Andrew once again. She was going to have to wake him up in order for this to work, but that would be easy compared to dealing with the emotional pain of leaving him behind to die. She lowered the sheet down towards him so that, once he was awake, Andrew would be able to hold on and be hauled back up. However, the sheet fell short, stopping about a metre short.

"Damnit!" Victoria cursed, and uneasily clutched onto the wall as she began to shimmy her way towards the door. The coach creaked and slipped again, but Victoria tried hard to ignore this and focus on a positive outcome instead. "ANDREW, WAKE UP!" She yelled, and carefully slid down towards the door. The second her feet touched the frame the coach swayed again, and Victoria nearly froze up in shock to think that there was a chance there was no longer any ground beneath her. But she had a task to do, and felt reassured by the fact that the sheet was now touching Andrew.

"ANDREW!" She shouted as she tied the sheet around the bathroom door handle to try and give a bit of stability. "ANDREW, YOU NEED TO WAKE UP!" Victoria shouted, and she dangled the sheet so that it tickled his face in hopes that that would stir him. There was a groan and Victoria felt reassured, hanging tightly onto the sheet as the coach continued to sway.

"Victoria…. Is that you?" Andrew groaned, wiggling his body and putting a hand to his head. His eyes slowly came open, finding the sheet dangling directly in his face. "What's going on? What… why are you on a slope?" He asked, staring up at Victoria in shock.

"I'll explain later, but right now you need to grab onto the sheet so I can pull you up!" Victoria called. "We are running out of time, so this has to be quick."

"What do you mean we're running out of time?" Andrew groaned. "Why do I need pulling up anyway? What is going on Victoria?" Victoria was getting stressed out as the coach continued to sway, and she didn't have any patience to try and explain the situation.

"Andrew, just grab onto the sheet! You need to trust me!" She yelled desperately. "I swear I will explain everything as soon as you up the sheet, but you just need to believe me right now! Oh, and looking down may not be the best idea…," she added a bit weakly, Andrew's eyes bulging at this point. He looked a bit uncertain and nervous, but Victoria sighed with relief as he grasped onto the sheet.

"I think trusting you is the only thing I can do right now," Andrew said, and he began to haul himself up, pushing against the coach floor to hold himself up. Victoria was so happy he was moving that she forgot that she should be helping, but quickly helped to pull the sheet up. Her arms began to scream again and Victoria wondered if they were ever going to heal now, but there was more important matters: the coach was still swaying on the edge, sliding forwards a few more feet. It was lucky that Victoria had managed to stir Andrew now, as it seemed that the entire coach would be lost within the next few minutes.

Andrew was struggling to pull himself up, and Victoria equally struggled tugging on the sheet, but their combined effort was managing to make some progress. Andrew was now close to getting into the door and to safety, but if he fell now than there was a chance he could still go over the edge, so Victoria tried her hardest to heave him up.

"Take my hand," she yelled once he was near the doorway. She leant down, hanging tightly onto the sheet with her other for balance, and Andrew stretched one hand up as far as he could. It was a lot tougher holding onto his weight this directly, but Victoria pushed against the frame to heave him in. Andrew reached out and clung onto the frame with his other hand, and Victoria felt relief as he let go and heaved himself back inside the coach. He got one brief glance of the valley below before Victoria kicked the door shut, the slam causing it to slip a few more feet. Silence filled the room between them asides from their heavy breathing, and Victoria and Andrew merely stared at each other, thinking about what had nearly happened.

"So… I am guessing the coach is leaning over the edge?" Andrew asked quietly, and Victoria nodded as she continued to gather her breathe back. Andrew looked shocked to have this confirmed, but he quickly pulled himself together. "Well, I guess we will have to find a way out then, won't we?"

"I guess so," Victoria replied, not realizing the coldness that slipped into her tone. Now that Andrew was relatively safe, Victoria had time to think about what had happened just before the violent jolts that had put them in this situation. She wouldn't forgive Andrew until he apologized properly for what he said, and it didn't seem like that was going to happen any time soon.

However, as Victoria began to feel her anger rise up again, a shout sounded from the compartment closest to them. She snapped out her anger and forced herself to focus on the situation they where in. There were several bangs, and Victoria and Andrew scrambled forwards into the messy compartment, watching as the door began to crack severely with each bang.

"What's going on?" Gwenda mumbled from the floor, rubbing around her cut as she began to stir.

"I'll explain in a moment, just don't push yourself," Victoria said, bending down and smiling reassuringly, though it didn't take long for Gwenda to realize that they were in a strange compartment on a slope and remember the slope.

"There was a crash, wasn't there?" She gasped. "Victoria, what's going on?" Victoria felt bad about not telling them the truth, but she was mostly keeping quiet as she had no idea how to put their situation into words: it wasn't exactly normal and it would only make Gwenda freak out like Victoria had when she had first realized. Andrew was staring down suspiciously as if waiting for an answer as well, but Victoria was saved as the door suddenly shattered, causing them all to duck as splinters flew across the compartment.

"MILTANK MIL MIL!" A familiar voice cried, and Victoria's heart skipped in delight as she saw Millicent was standing in the open space, smiling widely and mooing towards another group. Things suddenly seemed so optimistic, and for the first time Victoria felt certain they were all about to get out alive.

"Move asides Millicent, you're going to be a bit too big for this ride," another voice said, and suddenly Jim appeared alongside, beaming almost as brightly as he had in the treasure room. Victoria was so relieved that they were going to get out that she felt a bit light headed, and she and Gwenda exchanged joyful beams.

"You three need to get out of here quickly!" The hiker told them, reaching in and clearing aside some of the mess to give them a clear path. "There's a builder further up the carriage that says it's only a few minutes until the whole thing falls, so we have to move quickly!"

"Falls?" Gwenda asked nervously, her eyes bulging with fear, but Victoria pushed her forwards to avoid any awkward questions, eager in a rather bad way to get out and find out what had happened. Andrew had put on the same surly face he had worn before the jolts, and Victoria was angry to see he was still annoyed at Jim's presence.

"Just be glad he is going to save us!" Victoria snarled as she walked past, heading for the door as Jim helped Gwenda down.

"Funnily enough, I get out of a door on my own," Andrew replied icily, but Victoria ignored him as Jim extended a hand and helped her down. Millicent rushed forwards as soon as her feet were planted firmly on the ground, pulling her into a tight hug, and several of the cries showed that the other Pokemon were nearby.

"Thanks girl," Victoria said, hugging her back and letting all of her tension escape, relieved to finally be out of the coach. However, she still had no idea what had happened, and carefully pushed Millicent away and turned to face the damage.

It was worse than she expected.

It appeared that the entire train had come off the tracks, and not all of the coaches had been as lucky as theirs. The one nearest to them that their compartment had been in had merely derailed, but the next three were all on their sides, their windows cracked and people and Pokemon trapped within. Men were clambering onto the sides and wrenching doors open, helping to lift people out of their compartments. One further down had landed upside down in the trees, and a fire seemed to be raging in the distance. Tears from women and children accompanied the sounds of flickering flames and the shouts of men passing on orders. There were cries of people trying to find loved ones, while other people either wept hysterically about the situation or sat perfectly still in silence, staring at the destruction with almost dead eyes. It was truly haunting scene, and Victoria could only imagine situations like this happening around the 118 Ferry and the _Johto Jewel_: people rushing around, trying to save lives and fix a situation that seemed unfixable. Victoria clung onto Millicent for support, watching in horror as a body was taken away on a door, glass piercing the screaming man's body.

"This is horrible… how did this happen?" Victoria asked quietly, looking around at Jim for answers. The hiker had just helped a moody Andrew down, who was instantly surrounded by Electrike and Trapinch, and the burly man turned towards Victoria as he heard her question. His face looked grim, and Victoria knew that whatever the reason was she wouldn't like it. However, before he could even open her mouth, a scream sounded from inside the coach.

"HELP ME!" A voice yelled, and Victoria, Andrew, Jim and Millicent stared through the compartment they had just moved through. It sounded like a woman, and she was banging desperately on the door opposite them, somehow stuck in her own compartment. Victoria gaped in shock, the woman's fate suddenly thrust in their hands as everyone else around was busy with other people. She had no idea what to do, as the coach was moving ever closer to the edge, but Jim suddenly bounded forwards.

"Hold onto the coach, make sure it doesn't fall until she is out," the hiker said firmly, and he began to walk through the mess, struggling to move properly on the slant.

"Jim, it's too risky!" Victoria shouted after him, admiring his bravery but at the same time wondering what he was thinking. She looked at the others for help, but Andrew, his Pokemon and Millicent were rushing away. The Miltank moved towards the end of the coach, which people had stupidly decided not to stabilize, and she grabbed onto the buffer beam and lowered it down. Andrew explained to some men what was happening, and they seemed relieved as they were able to get some stragglers out of the coach.

"What is Jim doing?" Gwenda asked in shock as she, Scarlett and Petal rushed over. "It is far too risky to be in there!" Victoria could only nod, watching in stunned silence as Jim kicked the door down with explosive force: he was risking his life to save a woman he didn't even know. Jim had let his rather trusting and nice side out during this train trip, and Victoria couldn't help but wonder how she would react in the same situation. Would she be the person rushing around helping others, or would she be staring blankly into space like the silent people?

"Everyone else is off this coach!" One of the men who looked like he simply lifted weights for a living shouted. "Once that guy is off the coach we'll have to let it go, we can't worry about stabilizing it when there are more people to help!" The other workers seemed to agree, and Victoria could only hope Jim could get out before they decided to let go. It seemed he was checking the woman before bringing her out, and Victoria watched tensely, ignoring Gwenda's questions and all other noises as she hoped for Jim to escape.

"TAAAANK!" Millicent suddenly yelled, and Victoria turned around, partly as her Pokemon and friend seemed to be in pain and partly because this couldn't be good news. The Miltank was struggling to hold onto the coach it seemed, and the entire thing was shaking up and down as she tried to hold on. Andrew and his Pokemon were trying to weigh it down, and the workers rushed over and tried to hold on, but their strength wasn't going to be enough to hold on to a heavy wooden structure that had slipt far too much.

"JIM, YOU HAVE TO HURRY!" Victoria screamed frantically, watching as the doorway of the compartment started to slip away. There was a very real possibility that they could lose a friend and helper, and Victoria wasn't sure if she could handle this. "We have to help: what were the moves we taught our Pokemon? Can one of them help?" She said, turning suddenly towards Gwenda.

"Ummm…," Gwenda mumbled, taken by surprise and not sure what to say. "There is… um… there was…"

"Come on Gwenda, think faster!" Victoria wailed nearly on the verge of tears. She turned around and gasped in relief, watching as Jim ran forwards with the woman on his shoulders. She was bleeding and didn't look well, and Victoria rushed forwards to help them down.

"VICTORIA, DON'T GO NEAR IT!" Andrew suddenly yelled. "THE ENTIRE COACH IS BREAKING!" Victoria was shocked, but the words only made her want to help more. She stretched her arms out and Jim practically threw the woman towards her, and the force would have knocked her over if Gwenda hadn't come for support. The woman collapsed to the ground and Victoria quickly moved her aside, caring little for her injuries at the moment as she turned for Jim.

However, Victoria found one of the most heartbreaking images of her life unfold before her.

Jim had tripped over in the mess as he had thrown the woman, and lay tangled on the floor as he tried to get himself up. But there was no way he could make it: the coach was beginning to slip over the edge, and the doorway was already hanging over. Millicent and the men were trying their hardest, but the more weight that slipped over the edge the less chance they had of holding on. Jim seemed to realize this, and he looked up at Victoria with eyes that shimmered with sadness.

"NOOOO!" Victoria screamed, and tried to leap forwards towards the doorway, but Andrew's arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her backwards. She tried to break free and lashed out with vicious kicks, tears streaming down her cheeks all the same, but nothing was going to work. The coach slipped about ten centimetres, Jim's fate now sealed even if he could free himself.

"I hope you all make it to Lilycove," he called out, a single tear streaming down an otherwise burly face. Victoria continued to try and free herself, screaming and beating Andrew as much as he could, but there was nothing that could work. She could only watch as the coach suddenly slid away, the view of the hiker that had helped them get this far disappearing from view forever. As the last of the coach disappeared over the edge, Victoria collapsed into Andrew's arms, tears streaming down her face and her sob silencing all that was around her. Despite the tension between them, Andrew slowly stroked her hair and rubbed her back, but nothing was going to console Victoria: just when things had been looking up, just when it seemed that they would reach Lilycove without anymore dramas, this derailment had gone and happened. Victoria wasn't sure if there was any space left in her mind for any more sadness and guilt, but yet her memories of Jim, which should have been fond memories of a man who had actually cared for them and had helped them through a tough place no matter his true intentions, would be plagued with sadness and regret for a man taken before his time and who had only tried to spread his help.

**For a note, the cause of the crash will be revealed in the next chapter before anyone asks. **


	38. Chapter Thirty Three: Darkness

**Chapter Thirty Three: Memories**

Only a few hours after watching a friend plummet to his death, Victoria found herself staring towards a pitch black sky that perfectly reflected her mood.

For nearly fifteen minutes, Victoria lay beside the track as tears streamed down her face and towards the ground below. Gwenda stayed with her with arms wrapped around as a sign of friendship and comfort, but Victoria wasn't sure what use it was. It was too hard to focus on the touch when she couldn't help but feel guilty about being uselessly flopped on the ground, watching all the drama around them. It seemed as if the action around the train crash had stopped now that their coach had fallen, but there were still people trapped inside their coaches, still fires to be put out, still injuries than needing tending to and dead that needed to be respected. Andrew, Millicent and the other Pokemon descended into the chaos, willing to help in whatever way possible, leaving Victoria and Gwenda along with each other.

A tank engine that had been in a shed nearby was brought down about half an hour after the crash, bringing with it more men, strong Pokemon and better supplies to deal with the situation. Andrew emerged with blood soaked clothing and a slight scorch mark from getting too close to a fire, but managed to hold himself together and look calm. Victoria envied how he never got as emotional as they did, simply looking surly and tough in the face of danger and death. He told them that another train would be bringing the survivors back to a large area of bare field to the east, and Victoria let Gwenda speak for her, too shaken and too depressed to say anything else.

They left twenty minutes later when the train arrived, waiting for the nearly a hundred passengers to climb onboard, and the engine sped towards the fields in order to head back quickly to gather the remaining survivors. Victoria was nearly separated from the others as a surge of passengers left the coaches, being directed by volunteers from Lilycove and the surrounding routes to head to different areas. She wanted to just be alone and away from all the screaming and crying, the horrific sights of burnt bodies being whisked away to a large white tent only making the unhealed wounds sting more. However, Gwenda and Andrew were unwilling to let her out of their sights, and quickly appeared on either side of her.

"Let's try and find somewhere to sit down," Gwenda said warmly with a soft smile on her face, and Victoria merely nodded along. She tried to avoid eye contact with Andrew as he led the way, carrying the suitcase with him. It all seemed to be his fault that Jim had been on that coach as it fell off, and would forever lay within its walls: if Andrew hadn't gone into hiding and tried to avoid them, than maybe Jim wouldn't have died, maybe none of them would have been injured.

These 'what if's' circled around her mind as the sky got progressively darker, and Victoria simply sat on the end of a fold out bed and stared up towards the stars as they twinkled above. Gwenda had been escorted away by a helper who thought her head and leg injury seemed nastier than first thought, and Andrew was resided to staying sulky and Victoria was happy to just leave him there. It seemed funny that only a few days ago that Victoria couldn't imagine life without him, waking up to find him by her side at Doctor Granger's, being next to him near the boiler of the _Johto Jewel_. Their relationship had seemed so destined to be perfect after all the hardship they had gone through, and Victoria had been ready for this happiness.

But now they sat metres apart, doing their best to ignore each other. Part of Victoria still wanted to regain that connection with him, but most of her knew that Jim's death could be tied back to Andrew and his sulking. She had not expected this angry, moody, untrusting side of him, having always seen him as the muscular and kind hearted soul that would sometimes say hello to her as they tended to the fields of a sociopath. Every time Andrew snapped about something, every time he threw an accusation or insult around, Victoria could feel part of that image slipping away, and it hurt her to think that a relationship she had always wanted might not come to fruition.

But as Victoria stared towards the stars and the inky black ocean in the distance, trying to block out the sounds of crying and speeding steam engines behind her, there was one aspect she couldn't help but shake from her mind: why had the death shaken her like this? It wasn't as if Gwenda, Andrew or one of their Pokemon (who were currently being healed by a volunteer nurse) had fallen into the ravine below. Jim was someone Victoria had only known for less than two days, and he had tricked them for several hours before letting his softer side out, so why was it affecting her so much? Did Victoria partly blame herself for the death? Should she have checked the other compartments before leaving, or tried to help hold on or help Jim escape? Something was buzzing around her mind, and Victoria couldn't help but question both her reasons for crying and whether or not the blame could partly be shifted onto her.

"I'm going for a walk," Andrew said suddenly, and Victoria glanced over in time to see him walking quickly off through the maze of beds that stood behind them. More people had joined since Victoria had walked through: many people were in groups, some with families trying to silence distressed children, others friends trying to console each other over injuries and losses. It was easy to pick out the ones who had lost the person they had been travelling with: they either wept hysterically to themselves with passer-bys leaving them be, or otherwise sat quietly and stared rather blankly at the grass in front of them, trying to accept what had happened. The scene was tragic, and staring around managed to soften Victoria's surly and downtrodden mood, wondering what dreams these people had had ruined by the accident, who they had lost and whether any of them were blaming themselves for the death of another.

_Hello there. _

"Oh, hello," Victoria said absently, turning around to briefly glance at whoever was talking to her. However, she had to do a double take and nearly leapt off her bed in fright: an Absol was standing directly in front of her, sniffing around several beds that had been set up but were currently unoccupied. Victoria didn't know a lot about Hoenn Pokemon, but Absol was one they had always been warned about as children.

"You… you're… you bring bad luck!" Victoria stumbled, trying to back away as all thoughts of the accident left her mind as she stared at the sharp sickle rising out of Absol's head that was as dark as the night's sky around them. The Pokemon, who had a shaggy white coat covering the rest of his body, gave Victoria a judgemental look.

_Oh, I'm a bad luck charm am I? I never knew! _The Absol replied in a rather sarcastic manner. Victoria was even more shaken by the fact the Absol could talk, and felt like calling for help. _Let me just clarify this straight away: I am not a bringer of bad luck, something that my species has been labelled with for many centuries. Absol's have the ability to sense danger and destruction, and we use this gift to try and warn humans about the dangers before them. However, this gift has become a curse, and whenever the bad things occur, our appearance has been connected towards said incident._

"How can you talk?" Victoria asked nervously, still taken aback to have a random Pokemon approach her and start a conversation.

_An elder in the pack I use to stay in taught us to manipulate some of the Psychic powers we were given,_ the Absol explained. _However, it is a rather draining ability due to the pressure it puts on our minds: unlike Psychic Pokemon or ones that can learn the move Psychic, we are forced to get our abilities from our natural powers that come with foreseeing the future. _Victoria was rather stunned by this, never hearing of a Pokemon with a special gift that was also a bit of a hindrance. However, she was beginning to put the pieces together, and felt a sense of dread washing throughout her body.

"Why are you here?" Victoria asked timidly. "Is… is it because of me? Is there going to be some sort of disaster?" There wasn't anything Victoria could think of that could be worse than a train crash, an exploding cruise ship and ferry or a collapsing sand tower, but the rather awkward look that appeared on the Absol's face seemed to imply that there was something.

_I am not sure how you are involved, but I had a vision only a short time ago, _Absol explained. _I just saw images of something burning, possibly bonfires or some arson attack, and the ground was shaking violently. People were all running in one direction, but I could see you running against the grain, towards a point in the distance, away from all of this drama. I think… I think someone may have been standing there, possibly two or three people, I am not sure._

"Well that's not that helpful!" Victoria snapped, stunning the Absol. "Where is this meant to be taking place? Do you know what any of those people look like? For someone trying to predict the future, you aren't doing a particularly good job!" The Absol looked rather shocked and Victoria calmed down, rather appalled herself at how she had just reacted. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean it to come out that way…. I just….,"

_I understand, _the Absol interrupted, smiling kindly. _It must be irritating to receive this very vague premonition, but it was a rather blurred and confusing vision, and I only came over here because I recognized you. I was just making my way from the crash site, and –_

"You were at the train crash?" Victoria said, thoughts of Jim and her anger at Andrew quickly rushing back. "Are you sure you aren't a bad luck sign?" The Absol smirked at this and Victoria did as well, but she was beginning to understand why these Pokemon had such a bad reputation

_Well, you could say that, _Absol replied. _I did indeed have a vision about a man damaging the tracks, therefore causing the train to derail, and I ran towards the scene in an attempt to stop it but arrived to watch the engine coming off and crashing straight through a tree nearby. _

"What do you 'a man damaging the tracks'?" Victoria asked suspiciously. She had never found out what had caused the train to derail, and had wondered if anyone knew what had caused it, never expecting a Pokemon to give her the answers.

_I am not sure how to properly describe him, _Absol replied, looking a bit confused. _He was old and seemed rather weak, leaning against a cane as a Skarmory and Graveller damaged a large section of the track. However, I am not here to discuss the past, even though it may have affected you. I came to warn you about the possible disaster that could soon be occurring, and how you may be involved. Are you even listening to me? _The Absol asked grumpily, as Victoria was staring at the ground in front of him with a shocked look across her face that was difficult to read.

"No, it can't be…," she whispered fearfully. The description of the old man and his Pokemon was all too familiar, but it was something Victoria hadn't truly been worrying about or expecting: had he even emerged from beneath the sand before they had reached the train? How did he even know they were onboard? And now there was Absol's prediction: Victoria looked around, eyeing all of the beds and huts that had been hastily arranged by the local volunteers before the survivors arrived. There were a lot of people here, all trapped in one place, similar sounding to how Absol had described things…

"We have to move, now!" Victoria cried, suddenly leaping up and grabbing the suitcase nearby. She quickly opened it up, checking everything was in there: spare clothes, the map, the articles, the mirror, the book that contained the spell that healed Gwenda, the last Apricorn ball they had. Victoria glanced towards the lonely Level Ball, thinking of how they had so quickly used all the Apricorn Balls they had stolen, and how she had just been given a chance to use the last one.

_Why do we have to leave? _The Absol asked, sounding fairly confused. Victoria had partially forgotten he was right there, and turned quickly towards him in a rather jumpy manner.

"I think that your premonition is about to come true unless we leave here quickly," Victoria explained, closing the suitcase but holding onto the Level Ball. "If I am correct, than the same person who caused the train crash is about to launch an assault on the camp, and we need to move."

_How do you know he is going to come here, or if it is even him? _Absol asked, moving in front of Victoria as she turned towards the rows of beds. _My vision was not particularly clear, but I don't think it was this area…_

"The description of the man you gave matches someone that wants me dead, and I have a feeling that he will be here soon to finish the deed, whether as part of your vision or not," Victoria explained quickly. "My friends and I need to leave now to prevent us from being killed. However, I don't want to leave you behind when you came up to me and warned me of this," Victoria added, holding the Level Ball up. The Absol looked rather surprised by this, staring towards the yellow and black coloured ball with wide eyes of surprise.

_I've never been asked to join a team before… everyone just presumes I am going to bring their team bad luck, _Absol explained, sounding rather emotional. _I mean, I don't even know your name, or any of your friends. I only just saw you running through a crowd and thought I would come and warn you: why do you want me on your team?_

"Because," Victoria said, leaning down with the first smile to cross her face since that morning, "the fact that you came across to warn me shows that you were brave enough to talk to humans even after always being rejected, and I would like to have a brave Pokemon on my side for whatever horrors are about to occur. Besides, I don't think it would be possible for me to get any worse bad luck." Absol smiled at this, and Victoria extended the Lever Ball towards him. "My name is Victoria, and I would love for you to join my team… though you're going to need a nickname – Absol won't cut it in this world!" The Absol smiled and laughed, and Victoria was surprised to find herself laughing after all that had happened.

_I would love to join you, _Absol said, and he touched his sickle to the button on the ball. Victoria watched as he turned into energy as was brought inside, the ball beginning to move along her hand as it decided upon the capture or not. And then, for the first time since seeing the train the previous night, Victoria felt proud and relieved as the Level Ball flashed: Absol had been captured.

"Yes!" Victoria said to herself, the boost of meeting a new Pokemon and capturing it pulling her out of her rage. She looked up towards the rows of beds before her, knowing it was time to start moving. She pushed asides her anger with Andrew and herself and her sadness about Jim's death, knowing that it was time to focus and get moving again. With the suitcase in hand, Victoria began to march forwards through the crowd, on the lookout for the medical tent: it was time to find Gwenda and get out of her before the Minder found them.

* * *

><p>The Minder had to find the slaves before it was too late.<p>

He limped through the train wreckage, admiring how he was still able to cause so much damage even at his old age and in his near feeble state. It had been a long and difficult day trying to make it towardsFallarborTownin his condition, but the Minder had managed to pull through and heal his Pokemon, just at the right time to steal a new cane from an elderly woman who was minding her granddaughter and overhear several gossiping railway employees, leading him on this path. He trained his Pokemon after teleporting to the side of the railway, Geodude's evolution giving a nice advantage to what was about to happen.

The Minder had watched from afar and in delight as the train derailed before him, the screams sounding from shattered glass as coaches rolled into the trees and bushes on either side. The dancing flames had only made him laugh, but he had been forced to hide from nearby lumberjacks that lived in the middle of the forest. It would have been nearly impossible for the Minder to fight off the muscular men in his weakened state, and he was forced to watch as the rescue operation unfolded before him, rather intrigued by the fact these men were willing to put their lives on the line to rescue people they probably didn't know… the science being these random acts was something that didn't register to the frail old man, and it was something he would probably never understand.

The Minder waited patiently for the opportunity to move down and find a way to get the three slaves and whisk them away without making a scene, but was taken aback by the sudden arrival of the tank engine to take the injured away. The sudden movement of passengers towards the waiting coaches sparked a thought in the old man's mind: what if the slaves escaped before he could get to them? What if they were already onboard the train, ready to be taken to a safe place? And, what if they had never been onboard and the information he had overheard was wrong?

The Minder didn't care at all about causing the accident, but he was concerned that if, after all of this trouble he had gone to, the slaves had escaped from him and had become a lot more difficult to find. He wanted to move down and begin searching for them now, but the number of people moving around would make snooping difficult and the Minder wanted to stay calm and collected.

It wasn't until nightfall that he began moving through the wreckage that lay scattered below, pushing his cane over bits of broken wood and shattered glass, impressed by his handiwork but at the same time concerned for his possible loss. The Minder did not like to lose, and he had let them escape him too many times in the past: if they managed to flee now, he wasn't quite sure how he would react. There was no sign of any human bodies around the coaches, and the Minder grumbled at the pain of pointlessly walking and putting pressure on his body, now turning his attentions towards the dead bodies that had been piled up near the tracks. If the three were still anywhere, they would be there. It wasn't quite how the Minder would have liked them to die, but at least it would have still been at his hands…

"Excuse me sir but can I help you?" The Minder was stunned when a man appeared before him, sweat and burn marks covering his shirtless chest that seemed to rise above the elderly man. He was wearing a suspicious look on his face, and the Minder cursed as he realised he should have concocted a lie before coming down, and annoyed that he had failed to notice this man approaching him.

"Oh, hello there young sir," the Minder said, putting on his kindest and frailest voice. "I heard about this terrible accident and was very appalled to hear about it and planned to come and see if there was anything I could do, but my neighbour at Fortree, James McAdams, told me that his grandson and two coloured friends had been playing around here and thought they might have been injured in the crash. I promised to check for him; you haven't seen a young white boy and two coloured girls around, have you?"

"We don't need any help sir, though we appreciate the offer," the man replied to his earlier point, clearly unsure about this frail man even walking, "however, I believe I saw two coloured girls around a coach that tipped over the side of the cliff, and then they caught the… first train, I think, to the grounds we set up. Its just a few kilometres down the line to the west," the man explained, pointing in the direction.

"Oh thank you young man, bless you," the Minder replied with a smile that didn't quite match his elderly persona. "Thank you for all the work you are doing!" The man smiled and turned away, the relief on his face visible as he fled from the discussion. The Minder continued to smile, simply standing there with a wide beam on his face: if the two had been so easy to pull out in a hectic situation like this, they must be some of the only blacks still alive.

The man glanced back after he had walked several metres, wondering if the old man was alright. But he was stunned to see the man was no longer there and came to a halt, wondering where he could have possibly gone. He had no way of knowing that the old man had teleported away, nor that he was on his way to finish the plan he had had in motion for many days now and finally complete the task he had set out to do.


	39. Chapter Thirty Four: Departure

**Chapter Thirty Four: Departure**

"Gwenda, wake up!"

Gwenda's eyes flickered open with a start, but she remained perfectly still and showed no sign to the person that had just spoken that was awake. She had never been this easily startled a few weeks ago, but after all that had happened to them over the past few weeks, it was no surprise that it took only three whispered emerging from the darkness to make her seize up in worry. It could be anyone, and Gwenda was still a bit disorientated from the medicine they had given her before stitching her wound up that she didn't want to try and challenge them. However, a hand grasped onto her shoulder, and Gwenda instinctively gasped and turned around to face the person looming over her.

"Oh thank goodness, it's just you!" Gwenda sighed with relief, clutching her chest and breathing deeply once she caught Victoria's face and hair in the dim lamplight coming from a desk a few metres away. Gwenda's worry disappeared for a moment and she began to laugh at her reaction, but the humour quickly stopped once she saw the look across her friend's face. "What is it? Has something happened?"

"We have to leave – NOW!" Victoria hissed, her hand leaving Gwenda's shoulder and grasping her hands. Gwenda gasped as she was lifted up, the blanket given to her by the nurse falling down to the grass below.

"I can't go anywhere Victoria! The medicine they gave me has made me too tired and weak," Gwenda explained, the mostly dark image before her swaying as her head throbbed painfully. But once her eyes and brain had focused on the scene properly, Gwenda silently gasped and tried to move backwards as she saw the flowing white fur of an Absol. "Victoria, what is going on? You can't just come and wake a sick person up and instruct them to leave and bring a bad omen along for the ride!"

"Apollo isn't a bad omen!" Victoria hissed, casting a nervous eye to the other sleeping or moaning patients that were spread around the white medical tent. There was a definite sense of worry in her eyes and across her face, and she seemed rather nervous about being here. "I can't tell you in here, there are too many people," and before Gwenda could object, the Absol called Apollo was leading them through the row of beds and towards the flap that made their exit. Several volunteer nurses and family members cast their eyes upon them as they left, but Victoria ignored them as she walked determinedly towards the exit.

It was a lot noisier outside, and Gwenda knew it would have been impossible for her to sleep out in the open with all the people talking, screaming, moaning and crying around her. She took a quick scope of the scene she had only briefly seen before: rows and rows of people that weren't injured badly enough to warrant going into the white tents, forced to remain in the cold night as they possibly mourned the loss of friends and family and wondered about those inside the tents. Gwenda felt teary just staring at them, and turned back towards Victoria and her Absol.

"Victoria, what is going –,"

"We need to leave because I think the Minder is about to arrive here," Victoria explained, grabbing the suitcase from where she had left it against the side of the tent. She turned back towards Gwenda and was a little bit pleased to see her friend had fallen silent, staring at Victoria in shock. "I knew that would get your attention," she said with a slight smirk, though stopped as Gwenda shot back a glare.

Quickly Victoria explained what Apollo had told her and how she had drawn the conclusions about the Minder coming here. She didn't add that it wasn't confirmed yet as Gwenda may be less willing to leave on a mere whim, but Victoria focussed more on the possibility of it than worrying about questions.

"I used Apollo to guide me towards your bed, but he can't talk now as his telepathic abilities are draining his energy," Victoria said in a whisper, eyeing a haggled looking mum as she walked close to them with two buckets of water. "But now that you're here, we can get on our way: I have all of our stuff and have already gotten our Pokemon from the nurses, so we can start moving!" Gwenda simply nodded along, still trying to process all the information that had just been given to her. "We do have to leave soon Gwenda," Victoria said softly, placing her hands on her friend's shoulder and smiling reassuringly. "If we don't, then the Minder may –,"

"How do you even know if it is the Minder?" Gwenda asked in a quiet voice, leaning against the side of the tent as she looked up at Victoria with rather teary eyes. "I don't want to have to keep running. If we stay here, then we can have protection and company, get food, water and a place to sleep. My head and leg both hurt and I really don't want to keep running, so _please_ tell me you actually know the Minder is coming before we start running again." Victoria was rather taken aback by this, having hoped Gwenda would have just started running. She had never looked at it this way, but could see that her friend did have a point: she watched as a local doctor and nurse rushed to deal with an elderly man that had collapsed, and knew that staying here could provide them with the care they needed.

"I don't want to keep running either, and I can't tell you that it is the Minder and that he is coming here," Victoria explained, putting her hands on her friends shoulders and trying to smile reassuringly, "but I don't want to take that chance either. Frankly, I would rather stay here and think about Jim and how he died because of us, but that isn't going to help anyone." She spun around and faced east, pointing towards the stars glistening over the horizon. "Lilycove City is not that far away at all. If we start moving now, we will make it there by the end of tomorrow, and we will be there in time for the Star Festival. We can't just stop our journey now when we've come so close!" Excitement had crept into Victoria's face and shone through her eyes as she spoke, and her happiness was too much for Gwenda to ignore when her friend turned back towards her.

"I guess if we can make it to Lilycove and see Jirachi, than it may just all be worth it," Gwenda whispered, managing a smile across her face. "I think it is what Jim would have wanted as well: he would have stayed with us until our wishes had been granted."

"I am sure he would have," Victoria replied with a sad smile, passing across the Apricorn Balls containing Scarlett and Petal. Gwenda slipped them inside her dress, and there was nothing left to stop them from carrying on. "Apollo, would you mind leading the way?"

_Certainly, _the Absol said, startling Gwenda a bit, but she recovered in time to follow after the Disaster Pokemon as he took off into the night.

It was a challenge trying to negotiate through the rows of beds, with very few people sleeping and a lot of legs stuck out that had to be clambered over. However, Victoria didn't mind nearly leaping over children as they played games and trying to avoid people who lay on the grass staring up at the stars: though it was rather dark circumstances they were leaving under with a sense of depression and sadness hanging over them, Victoria couldn't help but be a little bit excited. They were now closer than ever to reaching Lilycove City and have their dreams come true, and Victoria couldn't help but feel excited about it.

Apollo led them silently through the beds, and they emerged from the rows into an empty area that hadn't yet been inhabited. A short slope led down to a dirt path below, and Victoria was able to make out in the moonlight a sign pointing east.

"I think this is the way to Lilycove," she told Gwenda happily, and tossed the suitcase down the slope. Gwenda was beginning to look rather excited at the prospect of their journey nearly being over, and she beamed at Victoria as the two friends helped each other down the grassy hill. Victoria spared a glance back at the campsite: there was no security or anyone telling them to stay, as clearly anyone had the option to go if they chose too, and Victoria couldn't help but pity the people unable to move on themselves.

"Goodbye Jim," Victoria whispered to herself as Gwenda helped Apollo down. She probably wouldn't get a chance to spare the hiker a thought as they made their way towards the festival and then celebrated, and it seemed as if now she was leaving him behind. Victoria still couldn't shake the guiltiness about his passing or wonder why it had affected her so much, but there was a new path to focus on and they had to get moving.

_The journey should not be terribly long, _Apollo explained as Victoria heaved up the suitcase. _Based on what the sign says, we should be there by midday. _

"Thanks Apollo," Victoria replied, pulling the Level Ball out of her pocket. "You can take a rest now, if you want." Apollo nodded at this and Victoria pressed the button, the telepathic Pokemon turning to energy and being absorbed inside.

"Why the name Apollo?" Gwenda asked as they began walking a moment later, a sea breeze blowing across them as they went.

"Oh, it was just something I read in a book a while ago," Victoria explained. "It came to me when I was trying to decide on what to call him: it sounds a bit similar and Apollo was something to do with prophecy, so it all seemed appropriate." Gwenda nodded, and the two walked the next few metres in silence. It was very cold and eerie walking along the dusty, moonlit path, not a single sound to be heard. Victoria wrapped her left arm around Gwenda's right for comfort, and the two both felt more reassured as they wandered down the path. It began to feel more peaceful, and it was one of the more relaxed times Victoria had experienced in quite some time.

But, like all the other times of peace and quiet, it was not to last.

"Forgetting something?" An angry, bitter voice called through the night, cutting through the calm and silence like a knife. The two girls came to a halt, and Victoria sighed and tried to contain herself as she turned back to face Andrew. He was walking briskly forwards, the same angry expression he had worn on the train shaping his emotions.

"I completely forgot about him!" Gwenda gasped.

"I didn't," Victoria said grumpily, and she tensed up as Andrew came to a halt a few metres in front of them, breathing deeply and looking furious.

"Oh, so you purposely left me behind?" He snapped, having heard the exchange. "What was I supposed to do with having nowhere to go, no Pokemon to protect me and no items on my possession?"

"Well, you should have thought of that when you went and had your little whinge!" Victoria snarled. "Jim probably wouldn't have died if you hadn't run off like that!" Andrew was rather taken aback by this, and Victoria turned to Gwenda for support but was surprised to see she looked stunned by this as well.

"You're blaming me for his death?" Andrew said quietly, looking appalled. "That is outrageous and stupid Victoria and you should know it!" He continued, his voice rising once again. "I didn't make Jim jump into the coach and save that woman, and if you remember I did try and hold onto the coach so it didn't fall over the edge!"

"But Jim wouldn't have gone anywhere near that coach if we hadn't gone to look for you down there!" Victoria shouted back. "I still don't even know why you ran off like that! It was childish, immature and pathetic!"

"I only went out there because I care about you and want to protect you, but I can't if you just tell our story, our secrets, to whoever wants to listen!" Andrew growled back. "We didn't know if we could trust Jim, but you just blurted all our secrets out to him! I don't want anyone else to stand the chance of hurting us and causing us any more trouble because I love you too much for that to happen, but I don't know what to do when your just telling everyone who listens what our troubles are!" Silence fell at the end of his words as Andrew awaited a response, but Victoria was too shaken to reply. She had stopped listening after Andrew uttered five words she hadn't expected from this argument: _I love you too much_. Was this truly the reason why Andrew had gone out onto the balcony, because his love for Victoria and desire to protect her made him angry at her telling their story? She stared over at Andrew, whose breathing was becoming more normal as he began to calm down, a slight smile crossing his face.

"I don't need protecting," Victoria mumbled, unable to think of what else to say. She reached into her pocket and tossed Electrike and Trapinch's balls across, which Andrew easily caught as a disappointed look replaced his smile. Victoria felt guilty to see this look appear on his handsome face, but she did not want to have to think about him or her feelings right now.

"If you want to come with us than that's fine," Victoria said in a slight monotone, and she turned back around and continued walking, the suitcase whacking into her leg as she moved quickly off. Tears were beginning to stream down her face, and Victoria cursed at how easy it was for her to get emotional. She listened carefully and felt reassured to hear Gwenda walking alongside, but listened closer to make sure Andrew was following as well. She wanted to tell him how she felt, but Victoria wasn't going to let anything get in there way now that they were so close to Lilycove and the festival, and she couldn't shake the nagging feeling that Jim's death was still their fault.

As the three walked silently and awkwardly down the route, Victoria was unable to stop thinking about the fact she had escaped and gone on this journey in order to get revenge and get her freedom, but now that they were so close, it seemed more that this journey was only hurting more people than it was helping, and Victoria hoped she hadn't hurt her friends enough to make them finally just stop following her.

And as the three walked silently down the route, the Minder watched them from atop the hill they had all gone down to get onto the route. He had arrived at the edge of the field and had seen Victoria, Gwenda and Apollo move, followed shortly after by Andrew was he spotted them from across the way. The old man was delighted that they hadn't escaped his sights yet, and would love the chance to finally put a stop to them, but he had a chance to make one final impression on them.

"Come along," the Minder said, stretching his hand out to be grasped by his Kadabra waiting alongside, "let's make sure Miss Freeman never forgets her trip to Lilycove City."

**There are only five chapters left in the series! I am very excited to be nearing the end and I hope you will all enjoy the final events that I have planned! **


	40. Chapter Thirty Five: Arrival

**Chapter Thirty Five: Arrival**

"We're here…. we've made it!"

Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew came to a stop, their night and day of walking coming to an abrupt halt as they came across a large wooden sign before them. It was about twice their height and painted in bright colours so that it was still legible even as the sun once again began to set, every wonderful word legible before them.

WELCOME TO LILYCOVE CITY – WHERE THE LAND ENDS AND THE SEA BEGINS!

It didn't seem real, and Victoria was convinced that she was simply imagining things, her tiredness fiddling with her mind. But there was no making up these details: a row of buildings taller than any tree they'd encountered, reaching heights only the Mirage Tower could achieve, with smaller houses only one or two storeys high spread out across the city. The sun was reflecting in the distance, looking as if it was melting into the ocean as it cast a brilliant orange light against the still surface. There were little trees around but instead wide roads made out of grey stone starting a few metres before them, leaving the dirt track behind and giving the city a sophisticated look.

But Victoria's attention was drawn to how modern and beautiful the city was. She was turning eagerly around, looking for the signs that this journey had been worthwhile, and there it was: up ahead were two rows of stalls, one on each side of the road, stretching out as far as the water's edge. People were beginning to gather in the streets, walking in pairs or groups and wearing their best evening wear. And, hanging high above between two buildings, was a banner bearing the words Victoria had waited so long to see: WELCOME TO THE 1910 LILYCOVE STAR FESTIVAL.

Finally, they had made it.

"I can't believe it," Victoria gasped, feeling tears brewing as she looked up at the banner. "I didn't think we were actually going to make it here, with everything that the Minder has done to try and defeat us, but we've made! We've actually reached Lilycove!" Tears of joy began to stream down her face, and Gwenda began to get emotional as well. Victoria pulled her into a hug, smiling widely at her friend. "I don't think I would have made it here without your help!"

"You had the determination to get here, I'm sure you could have conquered anything that came in your way by yourself," Gwenda replied with a sniff, and the two girls cried from joy into each other's shoulders, glancing around at the city that lay before them. It seemed so unrealistic that they were actually here after all the exploding boats, collapsing towers and derailing trains they had dealt with. For days it seemed they would never actually make it, everything they came across seeming to be another obstacle that refused to let them carry on. But they had managed to pull through despite the emotional turmoil, the illnesses and injuries, and the loss of Jim, and here there were, about to achieve the dream that Victoria had first conjured up in what seemed like a lifetime ago back at the Miltank Meadows. But tonight, Jirachi would appear at her festival, and tonight, their dreams would come true.

"Well, shall we go in then?" Gwenda asked as the two pulled out of the hug.

"Not much point going through all of that to turn back now," Victoria replied, causing the two to laugh as they wiped away their tears. Victoria bent down to grab the suitcase, ready to move inside, but found it was already off the ground. She looked up to see Andrew holding it, a slight smile on his face. Victoria smiled back weakly, but the tension between the two was only strengthened by her small reaction. They hadn't spoken since leaving the camp, and any conversation attempts had been ignored. Victoria didn't want to say anything as she had no idea what to feel let along what words to use: part of her knew she loved him too, but there was the nagging feeling in the back of her brain caused by Jim's death. There was no way of truly saying whose fault it was, and trying to point the finger wouldn't make anything better.

Unfortunately, Andrew was at the end of his leash. His smile turned to a frown and he passed the suitcase over a little more aggressively than intended, nearly pushing Victoria over. But without another word, Andrew swerved past them and marched towards the city, leaving a shocked and confused Victoria behind.

"I'm going to have a look around," Andrew said quietly. "See you both later."

"Andrew, wait!" Victoria yelled, turning to watch him as he walked quickly away. He came to a stop and turned around to face her, and it was only now Victoria realized she still didn't have anything to say to him and merely froze, staring sadly over at him as he lingered on the other side of the city boundaries.

"Don't worry about me," he called back, sounding scorned. "This is your wish, not mine, so don't let me hold you back." And with that, Andrew wandered off into the gathering crowd, the growing number of people quickly swallowing him up. Victoria watched him until he was properly out of sight, the excitement and happiness she had felt a few moments ago quickly fading away. It was painful to watch him walking away after all they had been through together, all of his help in allowing her to get this far, and Victoria wanted to run after him and call out and beg him to stay, but would she be able to say the three words he was waiting for her to say back to him?

"Come on Victoria, don't get upset about him," Gwenda said soothingly, taking the suitcase from her and softly pushing her forwards. "This is what you've wanted all this time: don't stop now just because of a bit of marital difficulties." Victoria smiled at this, and knew that her friend was right: the festival was waiting for them and it was time to enjoy herself now that they were out of the path of danger.

"Race you to the first stall," she said cheekily and took off before Gwenda even knew it, finally stepping into foot into the product of her dreams.

Andrew, Jim and all the disasters and lost lives they'd faced on the way never left the back of her mind, but Victoria forced herself to find some enjoyment. It would be even more pointless if they had come all this way to simply wander around being depressed, not taking in any of the wonderful world they had stepped into. Victoria couldn't help but feel guilty, but was willing to enjoy herself and savour the festival life.

It wasn't difficult to find happiness inside the festival: it was a hive of activity and excitement, and the joyful buzz in the air was enough to suck Victoria and Gwenda in. The city was more decorated than expected, the main sight being multicoloured star shaped lanterns hanging between the stalls and buildings, casting a brilliant glow to make up for the diminishing sunlight. They criss-crossed across all of Lilycove, highlighting everything beneath them.

Victoria and Gwenda grinned like little children as they wandered wide-eyed through the main street, staring around at the many stalls around them. Food and drinks were being sold, with many soups, pastries and baked delights being swallowed up by the crowd, yet the biggest seller were star-shaped biscuits that was a local bakery's speciality, and Victoria and Gwenda were pleased to take the free samples handed out as they were running low on money. This didn't stop them from gaping at beautiful dresses and elegant scarves hanging from one area, or hardcover novels and poetry at another that was amazing to read. Ornaments designed to help bring you wishes and 'bring Jirachi into your home' were high sellers, and Victoria wondered if any of them actually resembled the legend she was here to see. There were game stalls spread out around the place, and Gwenda spared a few cents for a game where she had to toss a ring onto a star, and managed to win a bottle of cider for the two.

"This is amazing!" Gwenda gasped after having a sip and practically forced it down Victoria's throat. It was one of the greatest things she had ever tasted, and Victoria struggled not to drink it all. Gwenda pulled it away, causing part of it to pour down her dress. The two paused and stared down at the stain, before looking up at each other and bursting into laughter. Passer-by's glared at the two as they collapsed into a nearby seat, looking at them as if they were immature girls getting drunk off their faces. But the two were merely enjoying themselves: this was the first time they were actually getting to experience life since going to the orphanage in Ecruteak and then to Miltank Meadows. Neither Victoria nor Gwenda got to properly have a childhood, and since leaving the farm things had been marred by the Minder chasing them. The Star Festival would not only give Victoria a chance to get her wish from Jirachi: it was giving her the chance to fully live her life, and that was all she had ever wanted.

"We need to find some money," Gwenda said once the two had stopped laughter and managed to calm down. The sun had set now and the stars were out in force, almost as if they knew there was a festival happening below and had all come to watch, the moon casting light down in their honour. The lanterns provided the majority of the light in the form of a yellow glow that was ultimately pleasant and relaxing. Accompanied by music floating around the city from a live band playing in the next street, it caused a calming effect and allowed Victoria to return to normal, trying not to bring herself down with thoughts of the past.

"I think your right," she said, nodding even though it had been a few moments too late. "There has to be somewhere we could borrow money maybe, or possibly trade an item?" Victoria suggested quickly so Gwenda wouldn't look suspicious. A woman was examining a series of scarves in the stall next to them and turned around, the swish of her long blue dress grabbing their attention.

"Pardon me for eavesdropping on your conversation," she said in a rich but polite voice, "but I heard your plight and it reminded me of a stall I passed by on my way down the lane. I believe it was a pawn broker who is willing to take items in return for money."

"That is perfect!" Gwenda said, leaping up and nearly spilling the cider across the suitcase and quickly took off.

"Thank you," Victoria said with a smile, the women appearing stunned by Gwenda's sudden departure. "I think she is just after some money, a bit too desperately maybe." The women nodded and smiled in an understanding way, but Victoria still felt embarrassed as she set off through the crowd. It was hard pushing through the mass of people, and Victoria's mind briefly wandered back to Andrew, wondering how he might be coping with the situation. The crowd was so thick that she nearly missed the stall, but Victoria caught sight of Gwenda's dark skin and burst through the crowd, taking a breath of a relief as she appeared next to her friend.

They had correctly ended up at the pawn broker's stall, and Victoria was surprised by the variety of stuff on display that could put the other stalls out of business. Everything seemed to be sold here, from jewellery to furnishings, tattered books to leather bound encyclopaedias, suits and dresses that varied in quality, glass bottles and paintings, pots and pans: if there was something you could think of, chances are it was underneath the blue canopy and dark wooden frame.

Gwenda hadn't even noticed her friend as she was opening up the suitcase, showing the items inside to the pawnbroker himself. He was a tall and slim man wearing a well tailored suit that fitted in with the expensive items he surrounded himself with. Victoria had been expecting an older man, but could see how a youthful pawnbroker could come in handy: any woman would be more willing to part with their items and take whatever money came their way when the blue eyed man charmed them into it.

"Hello my dear," the pawnbroker purred in a voice that sounded a lot older than he looked, turning towards Victoria for the first time. "How are you? They call me Mr Goods, but I have not learnt your name or that of your lovely friend here."

"I'm Victoria and she's Gwenda," Victoria replied, feeling herself already charmed by his attitude. "What sort of name is Mr Goods?" The pawnbroker smiled and winked mysteriously, but before he could reply Gwenda let out an agitated grunt as she threw some clothes and the map of Hoenn onto the table.

"I swear we had something valuable in here!" She fumed, turning between Victoria, Mr Goods and the suitcase. Victoria frowned, having had high hopes for getting some money from the stall, and peered through the clothes in case something had been overlooked, but all they came across were the hedge cutters, their old books and newspaper clippings and Victoria's hand mirror.

"I am so sorry my sweet, but nothing in here is worth any value," Mr Goods explained in a sweet voice, staring down at the items laid out before him. "The hedge cutters could earn you're a dollar or two, the hand mirror as well, but unless you…," but the pawnbroker trailed off, his eyes staring down into the suitcase. Gwenda stopped looking annoyed as she caught the look and turned excitedly towards Victoria, the two friends exchanging beams.

"What has caught your eye?" Gwenda asked eagerly, peering into the suitcase with him. Mr Goods seemed startled to be spoken to and glanced up at them, reminding Victoria of a frightful Zigzagoon that had snuck into the Parrish's house one night. She had no idea why he seemed so shook up, but watched as Mr Goods suddenly lifted something up: it was the strange book they had taken from the Mirage Tower, the one with the apparent spell that cured Gwenda's wound.

"Where did you get this from?" He asked, sounding almost breathless, his youthful appearance fading away as his eyes bulged out at them. Victoria was rather put off by this and wanted to leave, the strange reaction unnerving, but as she leaned forwards to tell Gwenda this her friend stepped forwards.

"Actually, that book isn't for sale," she said, trying to sound polite but Victoria could sense the fierceness in her tone and knew why: they had taken the book to find out more about it, and Gwenda was hardly going to give it away before she worked out the secrets inside that had led to her miraculous recovery. She reached across to grab it, but Victoria and Gwenda were both startled as Mr Goods pulled it closer.

"No, you can't take this away from me!" He hissed. "Do you even know what this book is? Do you even know the power it has?"

"That's what I want to know!" Gwenda said angrily and lunged for the book.

"Don't fight over it!" Victoria gasped; noticing the crowd pausing to stare at them, yet the two people she spoke to ignored her: Gwenda clung onto the book as Mr Goods tried to drag it away, pulling her across the table. She reached into her dress and grabbed onto both of her Apricorn Balls, needing to stop this fight before it got too violent. But before Victoria could call for Millicent and Apollo, she was forced to leap aside as the front table flipped over. A mirror shattered, boxes of jewellery bounced open and the wooden table nearly fell onto Victoria's legs. She watched as Gwenda fell backwards and the suitcase crashed to the floor, feeling the Apricorn balls fly from her hands and listening to the gasp of the crowd as she herself fell to the hard ground with a body-jolting shudder.

"Bastard!" Gwenda yelled barely a second after Victoria fell, and she had barely let out a moan of complaint before watching Gwenda leap up to her feet. By the time Victoria was up on her feet, Gwenda was running down the road shouting after Mr Goods, who seemed to have left the stalls behind and was crossing open ground.

"GWENDA!" Victoria yelled after her friend, but got no response as Gwenda disappeared through the crowd. She was tempted to go after her, but there was a pain in her back from where she'd fallen, and she suddenly noticed the number of people rushing forwards to steal from the unattended stall. Victoria wouldn't have minded after Mr Goods reaction, but some of their stuff was still there and she quickly had to pick it up.

"Back off, this ain't for stealing!" She snapped at one youth who tried taking the suitcase. Victoria grabbed the hedge cutters, hand mirror, books and clippings and put them back in. She felt as if there was something she was missing, but Victoria couldn't see anything as the crowd turned to a stampede, picking up every priceless object they could lay their hands on, every leg blending into the next.

"Mil Miltank Mil," a voice said in her ear, and Victoria found herself being pulled away to the opposite side of the street with tremendous force, but wasn't surprised by who it was. She turned towards her Miltank and Absol, the two Pokemon standing besides their respective Apricorn Balls. The crowd had all moved towards the stall or left the commotion behind, leaving Victoria and her Pokemon the only ones there.

"Thanks for getting me out of there, I thought I was going to get stood on!" Victoria said with a smile. Millicent beamed and nodded and extended her hand, holding something out. "The map!" Victoria gasped, taking the detailed drawing. Their path was still marked out, starting at Slateport City and ending where they were standing right now in Lilycove City. Once again, it felt like a lifetime since they had come across this route, and it seemed like it had taken years to cross to it. Victoria knew the map was relatively pointless now they were here, but she had no desire to get rid of it, a memento of the journey they had been on.

"Thank you for bringing this back to me," Victoria said tearfully, and she wrapped her arms around Millicent. "I am so glad that you came on this journey with us: I seem to be saying this a lot, but I don't think I could have possibly gotten this far without your amazing power and skill, as well as your undeniable friendship and loyalty."

"Tank Tank Mil," Millicent replied softly and pulled Victoria into one of her trademark back crushing hugs that nearly made her eyes bulge, but Victoria managed to smirk once her feet were back on the ground. She looked down at Apollo, who sat alongside silently, staring around at the crowd without any comment on what was going on before them.

"I should thank you as well Apollo," Victoria called out. "You may not have been with us for very long, but your warning about the incoming attack was vital, and I cannot thank you enough for it!" She smiled down at the Absol, but was rather stunned to get no response. He simply continued to sit there, looking around at all the stalls as if he was just another patron. "Apollo, can you here me?" Victoria said, Millicent pulling out of the hug, and now the white haired Pokemon turned around: there was a sense of urgency in his eyes that was all too clear, and Victoria was stunned to see this expression. "What is it, what's wrong?" She asked seriously, but the answer seemed all too obvious.

_I am afraid that we have made a wrong call, _Apollo replied quickly, glancing around as the crowd parted from the pawnbroker's stall. _This street, this city, these stalls… they all look too familiar, yet I have never been to Lilycove before. _

"No, it can't be… not here, not now!" Victoria whispered, staring around at Millicent and the city around them. There was no chance that this could happen now, not after all that had already happened to them, not when the dream seemed so close. Victoria wheeled around, looking at all the stalls, the buildings, the lanterns, the people, the stars: where they all doomed? Was fleeing from the camp the worst move they could have made?

"Gwenda, where did Gwenda go?" Victoria said breathlessly, turning towards where her friend had gone. "And Andrew, we can't forget about him! This cannot be happening, not here! Apollo, your vision must be false, it must be!"

_My visions have always come true, _the Absol replied solemnly. _Whenever I think I have found the first one to prove to this theory wrong, whatever I saw in my mind unfolds before my eyes. We have to leave now, before we can be afflicted._

"No, we can't leave, not without Gwenda and Andrew!" Victoria cried, tears streaming down her face from annoyance and desperation, and for the sheer fact that now, after everything that had happened, her dream was about to end.

Then the world was torn apart.

The explosion rippled through the air behind them, and Victoria would have been knocked to the ground if Millicent hadn't leapt in front of her. The heat and energy still tore through as the noise deafened her, and Victoria shut her eyes as she felt the wave of fire wash over them. Screams sounded all around them that were barely audible over the explosion, and Victoria could only imagine how many people would be harmed by the terror tearing through the festival.

The explosion lasted only ten seconds, and Victoria could feel relief as the force of the blast stopped pushing Millicent forwards. She opened her eyes and looked down at Apollo, relieved to see the Absol had hidden by her legs to avoid both the explosion and the debris that was now raining across the street. It was a lot darker, the strings of lanterns torn from their brackets and their flames cancelled by the blast, and the sound of music was replaced with terrified screams from the festival goers. They were already running away from the explosion, stall owners leaving their goods behind as everyone tried to flee. It was a harrowing sight, and Victoria pitied the people whose nights had been ruined by this event, their lives possibly torn apart as well.

However, she had to turn around.

Victoria, Millicent and Apollo turned towards the source of the explosion. The crowd of people couldn't hide the flames burning out from one of the skyscrapers near the end of the road, the orange, red and yellow casting a harsh light and long shadows across the festival. Rubble lay all around where the building had been blown apart, and all nearby stalls burnt down to ash, nothing able to be contained. Victoria was speechless and breathless, staring across at the raging fire: the perfect dream, the chance for her wishes to come true, had come crashing down. Fire had followed them on this journey, from the ring of flames that encircled them as they tried to flee Miltank Meadows, to the exploding ships and crashing train, all building up to this: one final act, one last terrible action that would stop their dreams from coming true.

As Victoria watched the building burn helplessly, trying not to get knocked over as people fled from the scene, tears streaming down her cheek, she saw something that made her heart stop. The flames flickered for a moment, parting just enough to show what lay on the other side, away from the joy that had been so easily crushed. Victoria had been unsure just how much more pain she could take, but there was her final test waiting on the other side of flames, the last test that would somehow prove just how much she wanted her dreams.

The Minder stood on the other side, the laughter on his face visible even from this distance, knowing that this game they had started was finally his.

And there, chained up and barely conscious in his arms, was Andrew.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the delay, school has gotten in the way, which is another reason if it may seem a bit jumpy in quality due to spending three days away from the computer due to a trip, but I hope the second half comes together nicely! :D The conclusion is gearing up now, so I hope you enjoy the last few chapters! And for future references to the spell book, look out for it in the GalacticVerse ;) <strong>


	41. Chapter Thirty Six: Fire

**Chapter Thirty Six: Fire**

The festival goers continued to scream and continued to flee from the scene of disaster, not wanting to linger around in case there were more explosions, all of them wondering what had caused it and why it had happened. Some people wanted to stay and help, but for the majority their sole purpose was to get out of the line of fire and try to save their own skin.

While everyone around her fled, Victoria remained still, staring through the flames towards her love and her hate.

Even as the fire spread to the surrounding stalls, lighting the street up as both sides of it began to burn, Victoria simply stood there with Millicent and Apollo on either side, the suitcase resting at her feet. She could only stare over at Andrew lying helplessly in the Minder's arms, unsure how the Minder got here or how he managed to get hold of Andrew, but none of that really mattered. Victoria's heart was pounding faster than ever, shock and confusion washing throughout her body: hadn't they won? Hadn't they finally outsmarted the Minder? Hadn't she, Gwenda and Andrew finally made it to the safe haven that was the Star Festival? This was supposed to be the end of the past and the start of a new life for them, but the Minder was refusing to let that happen, refusing to let them escape from the horrors of the Miltank Meadows.

The fact that their dreams were snatched away from them at the last minute was leaving Victoria frozen in shock. She knew she had to go and confront the Minder, she knew she had to be the one to rescue Andrew and find where Gwenda had gone, but she couldn't bring herself to do it: they travelled so far and for so long, going through so many challenges simply to get here, and having this one forced upon them at the last minute was to much to comprehend when their freedom seemed so close.

_Victoria, what are you planning on doing? _Apollo said, his voice sounding distant in the back of her head. _This fire is spreading down the entire lane and soon we will be completely surrounded. We have to move before this consumes us. _Victoria merely nodded, eyeing towards the Minder. The elderly man was smiling at her through the flames, egging her on, daring her to come towards him and fight for her lover's freedom. The heat was becoming unbearable, Victoria feeling the sweat coming down her body, and the smoke was beginning to choke them, making Apollo's words ring with truth. If Victoria had still been angry with Andrew and he himself had been lying on the other side of the flames, then she surely would have been tempted to turn the other way and leave with the rest of the festival-goers.

But today, Victoria wasn't going to take that path. Today, it was time to do the right thing.

"We're going forwards," she said, her voice croaky and raw due to the smoke. She turned towards Millicent and Apollo, wondering if they had any doubts about this, but their faces were solemn and filled with determination, both of them nodding as she glanced at them. Victoria turned specifically towards Millicent, staring into the eyes of their eldest Pokemon friend and feeling grim about the possible outcomes. "Whatever you do Millicent, don't leave my side."

"Tank Mil Mil Tank Mil," Miltank said with a comforting smile, and the two had a softer and quicker hug that set Victoria into action. Knowing that her friend would be by side was the encouragement Victoria needed for the dark path ahead, and once they broke apart she bent down and opened up the suitcase. The other four Apricorn Balls had been left in here after the train crash, and Victoria quickly grabbed them all up and stared them over, thinking at the Pokemon that were inside and wondering how their lives could have been different if they hadn't gotten involved in all this human caused drama.

As Scarlett, Petal, Electrike and Trapinch formed, Victoria felt bad for them as they were now soldiers and fighters in a war they hadn't properly signed up for, but knew that each one of them would be as willing to help as Millicent or Apollo who knew what they were getting in for when they joined their team.

"We have to move quickly," Victoria said, trying to sound confident despite the mixture of emotions she felt and the smoke getting inside her body. "The Minder has attacked us again, but this time he has Andrew, so we need to go and save him and make sure all this pain and suffering that bastard Minder has put us through ends tonight!" The six Pokemon all cheered, though the ones newly sent out looked rather confused by the flaming stalls that surrounded them, and Electrike and Trapinch were shocked about their trainer's capture. Victoria couldn't bear to look at their sorrow and turned towards the flames and saw the Minder was still standing there, not making any attempts to come towards her, simply standing still his attempt to coax her forwards into whatever he had planned. It was risky to go near him, but Victoria had to do, and part of her mind was telling her she had to.

"Are we all ready?" She asked the Pokemon, glancing back to see them but struggling to as the smoke got thicker. The six Pokemon all stared back at her, steely looks on their faces, and Victoria of how they had all been involved with them in the disasters that had unfolded before them, and knew they were just as willing to end the Minder as she was. "Good, now let's get moving!"

It definitely would have been an odd sight if anyone had lingered around to see it: a black girl marching down a flaming street, a suitcase clutched in her hand like it was a gun, with an odd variety of Pokemon moving with her. They would have wondered why she was doing this, what was possibly making her walk towards a flaming building and past burning stalls, and in the back of Victoria's mind she asked herself the same questions, doubting whether or not this was necessary, only for the sensible and braver parts of her brain to silence the negatives and tell her it was the right thing to do.

"Starmie Star Star!" Scarlett called beautifully, and she raised two of her arms up into the air. Victoria and the others turned around as water burst from a pipe nearby, coursing up into the air like one of the skyscrapers, yet it had more beauty to it than any building could possess. Scarlett directed it downwards and the water expanded, turning into a proper wave that crashed against the flaming stalls, tearing them to pieces but stopping the flames in their path. Scarlett turned around, sending the Surf curving around, wiping out all of the other flames, mostly the giant fire burning from where the initial explosion. Victoria watched as the fire was cleared and the Surf faded away with it, leaving only smoke and steam rising into the air in its path.

"Thank you for that," Victoria said with a smile, and Scarlett nodded back, her jewel flashing briefly in acknowledgement, as she directed the Surf across the last of the stalls. Victoria turned back to the road ahead and continued walking, not letting herself stop for too long in case she stopped for too long and couldn't keep reading. She kept telling herself she was ready for waited for her on the other side of the smoke, and Victoria only hoped that she…

"SKAAAAR!"

The second Victoria stepped foot into the cloud of smoke and steam the cry sounded, the noise sharp and piercing, echoing throughout the night. Victoria turned around in confusion, knowing who it was but unable to tell where it was coming from now that the firelight was gone. There was a swooshing sound behind her, and Victoria instinctively turned around as Skarmory swooped down towards her like a metallic beast rearing down from the clouds.

"TRIKE TRIKE!" Electrike cried as Victoria screamed and turned, and saw a burst of yellow out of the corner of her eye. The Spark crashed into Skarmory a moment later, and there was another squawk as the Armor Bird was blasted backwards by the effective attack.

_This is a trap, there are more Pokemon waiting for us! _Apollo cried. Victoria looked around, and was stunned to see rubble flying out in front of her from the direction of the explosion. The Pokemon shouted and scattered, with Millicent rising up and swinging a Brick Break to knock a section of brick away from Petal.

"Stay calm everyone!" Victoria called as she straightened up again, shouts sounding nearby as Electrike fired more Sparks at Skarmory. She tried to move towards her Pokemon, but screamed once more as there was a white flash before her in the clearing smoke: Kadabra quickly formed before her, looking grim as he held his spoon up.

"Kadabra Kadabra," he said, and his eyes began to glow pink. Victoria tried to scream but felt it close in her throat, and her attempts to move were hindered as a sensation moved through her body, leaving her unable to move. Her eyes bulged as her head began to throb, and Victoria began to have flashes of what could happen to her before the crushing feeling disappeared, sending her collapsing helplessly to the ground.

"Miltank Mil Mil!" Millicent cried angrily at Kadabra, who seemed dazed as he lay amongst rubble of one of the burnt huts. The Miltank reached down and scooped Victoria up, smiling at her and giving her a hearty pat on the back before turning her around towards the Minder, the smoke clearing now and revealing the path ahead.

"What about you –," Victoria began, but Millicent kept her head focussed firmly ahead.

_Do not worry about us, _Apollo said, _we can stop the Pokemon, but you need to go and stop this Minder person and save your friend. Quickly now!_ Victoria nodded, though felt nervous as she continued to step forwards, a piece of rubble flying in front of her possibly due to Geodude. There was no turning back now, but Victoria only hoped she made it out alive.

Stepping out through the diminishing smoke, Victoria got her first proper look at the open area. This part of Lilycove seemed to be more of a park or natural area, with the road stopping and curving away to be replaced with a wide field of green and trees that towered over some of the buildings. The ocean was out in the distance, the area curving down towards a quiet beach, the inky black ocean crashing up against the surface. It was a true slice of nature in the otherwise busy and modern city, and Victoria knew that this would be a beautiful place to come and spend a day in.

If only she could have come here on a happier day, a day where she, Gwenda, Andrew and their Pokemon could simply enjoy the scenery and spending time together with no deaths, no explosions, no guilt hanging over their heads, just enjoy a perfect day.

Yet here she was, coming to a halt in the still and silent park, a sea breeze brushing against her skin, freezing the sweat caused by the burning festival. Her eyes focused entirely on the Minder standing before her, the same arrogant and vicious smile that he had always worn spread across his face once more. She clutched the suitcase in her hands so hard she thought it might snap, and no one could blame her: Victoria wanted to scream and run forwards and beat the life out of the cruel and sadistic old man, hurt him the same way he had hurt her and Gwenda and Andrew and everyone other person he had ever come across, hurt him until her pain went away and she could get started with the life she had wanted.

But there was no chance of that happening. Victoria glanced down at Andrew laying in his arms, his eyes shut and mouth hanging open, noticing for the first time the blood dripping down from his head and across his perfect face. She wondered how the Minder could have done this to him, but she had to force herself to look away, beginning to feel tears building up in the few seconds she stared at Andrew's weak and helpless face, unaware of what was about to happen.

"Ah, Miss Freeman," the Minder said, laughter ringing in the back of his voice, and Victoria turned back towards him, anger coursing throughout her body as she tried to deal with the situation. "Miss Freeman, you have become so predictable throughout these events: always the one to try and save the day, aren't you? Trying to save the ferry passengers, trying to save your friend as she bled in the castle, trying to save that burly friend of yours as his coach fell into the ravine below. I knew take someone else you cared so much for would you bring you towards me, and now I can personally kill the person who started all of this mayhem."

"That was you…," Victoria said breathlessly, ignoring most of what he said as she glared towards him. "The train crash? Was that you, or did you just stand by the sidelines and let helpless people die?" The Minder smirked again, a devilish look flashing in his eyes.

"Of course that crash was my working," he said as if it was a proud accomplishment. "When you have Pokemon on your side, who needs guns or henchmen when they do all the work for you? Why, they are even holding up your Pokemon, seemingly the only back up you have with you. Yes, causing that train to derail was easy enough, as was it to learn where you had gone, and then to learn from the darling nurses that you had escaped, and where else could you have gone but here? Once again, you have become too predictable."

"It was you!" Victoria hissed, her fists clenching up. "You caused that train crash, and I've been blaming myself for his death, shunning Andrew away because of it, and, once again, it was all just your fault!" The Minder merely laughed at this again, and Victoria growled at herself for being so stupid and acting the way she had. Maybe they wouldn't be in this mess if she hadn't pushed Andrew away and practically forced him to wander off on his own. She stared at the Minder and felt all her hatred rising up her throat, every nasty thought and feeling she had ever experienced due to that man running throughout her entire body, and she knew that she wanted him dead.

"You're wrong!" She growled, shouting the words across him, blocking out all sounds of the Pokemon battle behind her, and the Minder fell silent, raising his eyebrows curiously. "I haven't come here now to play the hero or anything like that! I have been running away from you for too long, letting you get away with all you've done and knowing in the back of my mind that it's all my fault that these people have died. Even coming on this journey was running away from you and Edmund, not properly standing up for myself and the rights of everyone else you forced to work for you in that disgusting little farm!

"But I am not going to run away from you anymore! It is about bloody time someone actually faced up to you properly and proved what a despicable little coward you are! Admit it: you just hit Andrew on the back of the head when he wasn't looking! And causing that explosion – that just shows you can't actually enter a crowded area and fight me properly. You need everyone else out of the way before you can take on a little girl like me! I said you were weak back at the Mirage Tower, but I didn't think you were this pathetic!" The Minder looked as if he had been slapped, and there was silence for a moment as he let the words wash over him, his shocked expression showing he had no idea exactly how to counter this argument. It was Victoria's turn to smile as she breathed rapidly, unleashing all these emotions tiring her out, and she waited to see what the Minder had to say next.

"Wonderful speech Miss Freeman," he replied after nearly two minutes, talking slower and lot calmer. "I see you are smarter than I expected, good for you. I may be a monster in your eyes and this may be your chance to stand up to me, but you made an excellent point in that wander little yarn of yours. If you had never left Miltank Meadows, none of these deaths could have possibly occurred: the cruise ship, the ferry, the train, that hiking friend of yours – Jim, was that his name? Right now Mr Kingston is bleeding in my arms from a head wound, his injury and death going to be yet another life that you can be held responsible for. So, tell me this: as you think you're facing off against me, are you doing so to rid the world of another horrible creature, or are you defeating me in order to clear your own conscience?" Victoria had been expecting a comeback like this, but it didn't stop it hitting her like a punch to the stomach. One of the tears that had been building up broke through, streaming down her face as she hung her head in shame.

"I am well aware of what I have caused, there is no denying it, and I would be a fool to try and cover it up – a disgusting and weak fool just like you," Victoria hissed, her body starting to shake. "I will _never_ be able to get rid of this guilt for as long as I live. Already I struggle to sleep because of it, and frankly I think my own life should be taken as some sort of retribution. However, you are directly responsible for these deaths as you are the one that caused those innocent lives to be taken away and countless others to be destroyed. The least I can do is to eliminate you from this earth so you can never harm another soul again, and even if you leave me bruised, broken and bleeding as a result, I will at least feel the tiniest bit better about myself to know that you are gone." Victoria glanced upwards, more tears streaming down her face, yet she wore a look of absolute fury. She had meant every word that passed over her lips, and she could feel her mind and body tensing up as she prepared for this final assault. Victoria knew that there was a possibility she could die as a result from whatever fight that would soon take place, but she could easily live with that if she knew Gwenda, Andrew, Millicent, Apollo, Scarlet, Petal, Electrike, Trapinch, any other person or Pokemon that was currently living and breathing... she could die if she knew they would be somehow safe from the disease that was the Minder and the harm and hurt that he had already spread across this region.

However, Victoria was not expecting what was happening when she looked up.

The Minder's attention was fully on her, his wizened face screwed up in fury, either that his words had failed to harm her or that she had outsmarted him and threatened him, but he was staring furiously at her either way. He didn't notice as a figure walked up behind him, oblivious that she was holding a sharp rock in her hand and had it risen above her, ready to bring it crashing down.

At least he was until he saw Victoria's eyes.

The look of shock was instinctive, something uncontrollable when it came to such a startling situation as this. Victoria cursed herself as she saw the curiosity cross the Minder's eyes, wishing her face could have remained blank, but the damage was already done. The Minder turned, letting Andrew fall hopelessly to the ground like a discarded toy, and the old man was shocked by what he found. Gwenda was thrown, not expecting him to turn around, and made to bring the rock crashing down. Victoria cried out and began running forwards, but there was nothing to be done: she could only watch as the Minder swung his cane around, the end smashing into Gwenda's skull before she could bring the rock down.

"NOOOOOO!" Victoria screamed, coming to an abrupt halt as the tears continued to flow, watching as Gwenda came crashing down to the ground with a sickening thud, blood already pouring down the side of her face as the Minder's cane hang above it's latest victim.

Yet another life for Victoria to be held responsible for.

Seeing Andrew there she realized she does indeed love him and he needs to know that.

**I hope you are all geared up for the final battle that will take place next chapter! The end is nearly here! **


	42. Chapter Thirty Seven: War

**Chapter Thirty Seven: War**

Victoria stared down at the scene before her in horror, feeling her heart slow down and her breath catch in her throat: Gwenda and Andrew lying unconscious on either side of the Minder, blood pouring from both of their heads, unable to tell whether either of them was alive or dead. And there was the Minder, breathing deeply as he glanced down at Gwenda, her blood dripping from the end of his cane.

In Victoria's mind, the whole scene seemed to slow down, her attention focussing only on the three people in front of her. The sounds of the battle between their Pokemon and the Minder's were audible in the distance, but Victoria tuned them out as she processed what had happened. Gwenda had come out of nowhere, possibly watching the fight unfold from the safety of the trees and coming in when the time seemed right. She appeared in a second and had fallen by the next, and Victoria knew it was her fault: she had reacted to the sight of her friend, and her shocked look had caused the Minder to react in return. It was a painful thought but Victoria knew it was true, and stared down at her oldest friend, trying hard to hold tears in as she stared down at her limp body.

But Victoria knew the blame lay with the Minder as well.

Once again, her actions had led to him committing injury or murder. It seemed that every where Victoria went, everywhere she visited or lingered in or travelled on, and even though he had committed heinous acts of terror, seeing Gwenda and Andrew laying there was what set Victoria off. She had dragged them into this journey after all, and alone the three of them had survived against all that the Minder had put them through. Now that there was a chance she had lost them too, Victoria had no idea what to feel or say: she could now be alone, left to fight the Minder by herself with all the guilt left on her shoulders. Victoria wanted to end this, put the whole nasty situation behind her one way or another, but could she do it without the support of her friends?

"Well," the Minder said after only a minute of silence, though to Victoria it felt like an hour, turning away from Gwenda with his familiar smile creeping back onto his face, "it looks like it's just going to be me and you for this then, doesn't it?" Victoria turned to face him, anger coursing through her body unlike anything she had ever felt before, staring at the Minder with rage she knew she couldn't control. This was the same anger she had felt deep within the _Johto Jewel_, only moments before hundreds of lives were taken away as a result of the Minder's actions.

"I believe so," Victoria hissed back, putting as much venom into each syllable as she possible could. "I guess that means we might as well end things now then, doesn't it?" And believe the Minder, or indeed Victoria herself, knew what was happening, she was running forwards. Victoria was taken aback by the fact she was actually acting, always using her Pokemon or Andrew to fight for her since the cruise ship explosion, but she was letting her emotions run free, and she was ready to show the Minder the pain she had felt for all these years, but mostly for these last days.

The Minder was so shocked that he didn't defend himself, and Victoria had an open shot at swinging the suitcase around, smashing it against his shoulder. The aging man was knocked aside, nearly tripping over Gwenda, but managed to regain himself and raised his cane in defence as Victoria swung once more. Victoria knew in the back of her mind that a suitcase was not a proper weapon, but it was the only one she had close at hand, and her anger at the feeble man before her was enough to put some force behind the otherwise flimsy device.

"Foolish girl," the Minder hissed as he swung his cane again, whacking it against Victoria's arms as he took a step forwards, forcing her to step backwards. "You think you can defeat me with some luggage? I always knew you blacks were never that smart, but this is just plain idiocy." Victoria struggled to ignore the hurtful remark, but every word he uttered simply made her want to get her revenge faster.

"I always knew you were a foul, intolerable piece of vermin, but I didn't think you would be stupid enough to insult someone that very much wants to kill you," Victoria hissed, and she thrust her suitcase forwards. The Minder stood his ground and held his cane up across his body like a shield, trying to resist the force Victoria was putting into pushing the suitcase forwards.

"You have more strength than I expected," the Minder grunted, struggling to hold her off and move her forwards at the same time. "It seems all those days working at Miltank Meadows have done you some good: why don't you come back with me and see how stronger you can get."

"I'd sooner die than go back there," Victoria roared, and she pulled the suitcase back and force it forwards with all the energy and power she could muster, the face of Arthur, the boy she had watched being tortured, flashing before her. The Minder held his cane strong and steady, taking the break to step forwards and try to push her backwards, but was left stunned as the suitcase collided with the cane once more, but this time there was a resounding crack that snapped throughout the silent night.

Victoria stepped backwards, breathing furiously as she stared towards the cane, the Minder staring down at his weapon as well. It had not cleanly snapped in two, but the cane had definitely snapped to a point, barely holding on by splinters and now rendered useless. The Minder looked slowly up, and Victoria could see the shock in his eyes: one of his only weapons now damaged, one of his slaves finally getting an upper hand over him. She savoured every moment that their eyes met, Victoria staring across at her once tormenter, this strike filling her with such joy that she nearly began to laugh in the way he had always laughed at them.

"Oh, you think this is funny, do you?" The Minder said with a hiss, the frustration at this small defeat clear across his wizened face. "Let's see if you'll laugh at this," and with strength that Victoria had never expected of the elderly man, he twisted his cane and finished snapping the cane into two sharp pieces. Victoria stopped laughing in shock, never expecting the Minder to be able to do this, and was left in stunned silence as he began to walk forwards.

"You truly are a fool," he growled, swinging the broken pieces of cane and forcing Victoria to move backwards to avoid it. "You really thought you could get away with escaping my grasp, didn't you? You seriously thought three mindless slaves and a Miltank would be able to escape me? Did you ever for a second stop and think how stupid you are, or did your own self confidence keep you going, even after the _Johto Jewel _sank to the bottom of the Slateport Harbour, or the 118 Ferry exploded before your very eyes?"

"Of course I knew this was a stupid risk!" Victoria snapped back, holding the suitcase up like a clumsy shield as the Minder furiously beat the cane against it. "A day hasn't gone by where I regret leaving, regret putting my friends and innocent people through this all, but I manage to keep going. I keep going because I have the chance of wishing this all away and stopping anyone else from getting harmed!" Victoria's words rang out and she swelled with pride, but it deflated as like a popped balloon as the sharp wooden cane broke through the surface of the suitcase, the Minder tearing it away and sending clothes and books cascading to the ground. Victoria was taken aback and didn't notice as the Minder drove the broken wood into her arm.

"No!" Victoria whimpered as she flinched with pain, blood pouring down her dark skin and coming down across her dress and onto the ground. The Minder flashed a smile of yellow teeth, and he swung the other point, cutting the end across Victoria's forehead and knocking her to the ground. The suitcase landed with a dull thud as Victoria's head crashed into the hard ground, blood pouring from the cut but managing to stay conscious.

"Did you go through all of this just to come to this festival?" The Minder asked as he stared down at Victoria, and he began to laugh once more. It was cruel and cold, but there was a genuine laugh behind it as if this was the funniest thing he had ever heard. "I've chased you across all of Hoenn, killed all those people and fought you so many times, and you simply wanted to wish all you problems away on a magical Pokemon floating in the skies?" His laugh began to echo across the empty field, ringing out even above the dramatic sounds coming from the Pokemon battle that was happening behind Victoria. She looked up at the Minder, struggling to ignore the pain, feeling her consciousness on the verge of slipping away, his laughter adding more insult to injury as she lay weakly at his feet. She couldn't see straight, a strange blue blur appearing in the sky above her, wondering if she was close to death. Victoria wanted to fight back, she wanted to finally defeat the vicious man that had made so many years of her life hell and ruined her dreams in this last cruel way. All the rage that had built up over the past days, weeks, months and years… she wanted to let it out and finally give the Minder the punishment he deserved.

But all she could do was laugh.

The Minder took a few moments to notice, but when he realised his cold, heartless laugh wasn't the only sound cutting through the darkness, he froze and stared back down at Victoria as her softer, warmer laugh sounded above his. It was a truly heartbreaking sight as Victoria laughed with tears and blood streaming down her face, the sadness clear behind the joy, and the Minder was thrown: he had no idea why she was doing this, and he stared down at her in confusion and, even though he didn't want to think it, pity.

"Whatever are you laughing about?" He hissed, the words snapping out as Victoria continued to laugh, opening her teary eyes to look up at him, that strange blur still visible in the corner of her eyes.

"When you put it like that," Victoria replied breathlessly, "it all sounds hilarious! Your right, you're absolutely right! How were we supposed to stop you? It all just seems so pointless now, doesn't it? All three of us are laying here on the ground now, and there is nothing we can do to stop you now, is there?" Victoria continued to laugh, though it sounded more like a whimper now, unable to control herself as the blood flowed from her body. "I took on a monster with a suitcase and a couple of dreams, and look where that's gotten me. Hundreds of people are dead because of this trip, and it's all my fault…" The laughter stopped now, and Victoria glanced up at the Minder with tears in her eyes, feeling herself slipping away. "My dying wish is that I can bring back those lives lost because of me, stop the pain these families must be feeling, and cross my fingers and hope I can die now with a clear conscience, knowing I have righted my wrongs."

"How sweet," the Minder purred coldly once she had stopped talking, and slowly leaned forwards, his old age preventing him from simply getting down, and grasped onto the broken edge of the cane. Victoria gasped as he pulled it out, and her body began to shake as more blood spurted out as a result, though the Minder didn't care as it began to stain his clothes. "I hope those words have made you feel better, but it doesn't matter whether your mind is clear or not. You are going to die now, and there is nothing you can do about it." He raised the broken cane up in his hands, Victoria's blood dripping from it onto her heart, and with his other the Minder grasped onto his whip which he had tucked into his pants, the leather unfolding down near Victoria's eyes. "I am going to torture you now and make you pay for all the trouble you've put me through, than I am going to butcher out your heart as it continues to beat and take it back to Miltank Meadows and hammer it into the wall as a nice little message for any future rebels. Goodbye Miss Freeman, I will miss you once you're dead." Victoria shut her eyes, the blue blur disappearing as she did so, and tensed up for the first blow, tears continuing to mix with her blood. She knew that this was it, and she knew her last thought would be for all the innocent lives that had been lost and how she had led her friends to their deaths, never reaching her dreams in the end…

"I don't think so."

With those four angry words, everything changed.

Victoria opened her eyes in shock as the trees around them suddenly burst into flame, watching as a bleeding and pale Andrew wrapped his arm around the Minder's throat right above her. The Minder screamed and roared, angrily kicking the suitcase and sending the last of its contents scattering into the night. Victoria used her good left arm to drag herself away from the fight, confused as too what was happening, but unable to take her eyes of the fight occurring before her: the young, fit but injured Andrew choking the aging but vicious Minder, fury burning through his body as he took up the fight Victoria had been unable to finish.

"SKAAAAR!" A metallic cry rang out, and Victoria looked up to the sky and the strange blue blur as Skarmory soared overhead, yellow electricity exploding from her back. She turned around, and Victoria saw in shock that Electrike was hanging on for dear life, his Electric attacks exploding against her back and firing off into the trees. Victoria looked around and saw the other Pokemon were advancing forwards, Petal and Trapinch putting everything they had against the silver bird, while Millicent, Apollo and Scarlett were locked in combat with Kadabra, the Psi Pokemon continuing to Teleport and lead them towards the fight. A Graveller was suspended in mid air above Apollo, and Victoria could only presume it was the Minder's now evolved Geodude, knocked out during the battle and now used as a weapon.

The sudden change was all so confusing, and Victoria was struggling to stay conscious as she lost more and more blood. She looked down and saw that items from the suitcase now lay around her, with the hedge clippers to one side and her hand mirror on the other, clothes and books left there like someone had purposefully discarded them. Victoria loosely clutched hold of the remnants of her journey, the Minder's words still playing on her mind as the furious battle exploded around her.

"Victoria…," a feeble groan sounded out to the side, and Victoria turned around in shock to find Gwenda trying to walk towards her, but the blood from her head wound was coming down her neck like a wine coloured waterfall, and she was struggling to make it the last few metres.

"Gwenda!" Victoria gasped, though her voice was weak as well. She tried to stand in order to help her friend, but the loss of blood merely made Victoria feel woozy at the thought of trying, and she collapsed back down to her knees. Gwenda managed the last few steps before falling down as well, the blow softened by a pile of their older dresses beneath her.

"Oh Gwenda, did you have to try and strike him?" Victoria asked sadly, wiping some of the blood away from her friend's head. Gwenda merely smiled nervously, seeming as close to unconsciousness as Victoria was.

"It was worth a try, wasn't it?" She mumbled, looking up at her friend's face. "Once that Mr Goods had run away, I heard the explosion and was knocked down. When I got up, there you two were, fighting it out with words, and I felt that as long as you were keeping him distracted, than I might as well give it a go."

"And we might not be bleeding to death if you had," Victoria replied with a smile, knowing that she would have succeeded if she hadn't reacted. She glanced up towards where that strange blue blur seemed to keep appearing, wishing she could be up in the stars right now and not stuck in the middle of a battle. "Oh Gwenda, how did we end up like this? This was supposed to be the dream, wasn't it? Make it to the Star Festival and wishing all our problems away…," Victoria glanced around, taking in the two dramatic Pokemon battles and the continuing fight between Andrew and the Minder, the flaming trees and the ruined stalls and buildings in the distance. "Some wish this turned out to be…"

"TAKE THAT!" The crack of a whip cut through the night, and Victoria and Gwenda both turned towards the sound. The Minder had managed to break free of Andrew, and was now thrashing his whip against his bare arms that were raised up in protection of his face. The sound brought back distant memories of Miltank Meadows, memories Victoria wished she didn't have, and tears began to stream once more as she stared across at Andrew, blood pouring from his arms.

"You children are the most foolish creatures I have ever met!" The Minder roared, a vicious and psychotic look on his face as he brought the sharp leather smashing against Andrew's skin once more. "You will pay for hurting me! You will pay for all of the trouble you have put me and Edmund through! I will turn your corpses into scarecrows and leave your decrypted bodies planted in the ground for as long as I shall live!"

"You will do no such thing!" Andrew hissed back through his arms, trying to stand upright as he lost more and more blood. "I wish… no, I know, that Victoria, Gwenda and I will live long and happy lives while you will rot in the ground like the foul monster you are! No more harm will come to us tonight! We have survived you all this time, and we will survive you again tonight!"

"We shall see about that!" The Minder shouted, and he swung the whip around again, bringing it crashing five times against Andrew's skin. He tried to stay upright, but the ex slave came down to his knees, his arms stained red with blood.

"NO!" Victoria cried, and she tried to stand once more, but this only had the same effect as last time. She could only watch as the Minder approached Andrew, the Pokemon preoccupied by Skarmory and Kadabra to do anything, leaving him at the cruel man's mercy…

"Victoria….," Gwenda whispered hoarsely, and Victoria turned to face her with tears streaming down her face. Her friend's skin was beginning to lighten from the loss of blood, and there was a sad look in her eyes as if she knew what was coming. "I am not going to make it Victoria, I've lost too much blood, I can feel myself going."

"No Gwenda, don't say that, you can't say that!" Victoria gasped, clutching her friend's hands. "I need you with me, you can't die now, not after all we've been through!"

"I am truly sorry, but I know I am not going to make it," Gwenda said, her voice shaking as her own tears began to fall. "But before I go, I just want to make a wish, just in case Jirachi hears it, so I know this has all been worthwhile." Victoria began to sob at this, not quite sure what to say or think, but simply nodded and clutched her friend's hand tighter, urging her on. "I wish… I wish that this was all over… I wish that no one else has to feel the pain that the Minder and the Parrish's put us through. I just wish that this is all over, and you and Andrew get the chance to live a happy life."

"Y-y-you aren't going to die G-Gwenda… you can live happily ever after with us!" Victoria sobbed, unable to control herself. Yet she knew that both of them were bleeding to death, and it was a miracle they hadn't died yet. None of them would get to live the happy life they had always dreamed of, and this only made Victoria sob harder as she thought of losing Gwenda and Andrew permanently.

"If you die, than I'm dying with you," Victoria cried, and she pulled Gwenda into a hug, clutching onto her tightly as if they would die together this way, unable to die apart due to the strong bond between them. Both girls cried, and Victoria struggled to see through the tears and the blood, wishing she could die now before the Minder took them.

That was when she saw his reflection.

Though it was blurred from the different liquids staining her vision, Victoria gasped as she looked down into the hand mirror lying below: the Minder was right behind them, a psychotic look in his eyes and the broken piece of cane held high. Gwenda suddenly screamed, and Victoria moved as quickly as her injuries allowed: the hug broke apart as she pushed Gwenda out of the way, and then Victoria rolled to avoid the Minder.

"It will take a lot more than rolling to avoid me!" He laughed as he loomed over them both, trying to decide which one to take first. Victoria came to a stop, her hands grasping onto something cold lying on the ground below her. "I think I will kill you Victoria: I have always wanted you to watch your friends die, but I think killing you will be just too much fun to wait!" And the Minder brought the broken cane slashing down, aiming directly for her back. However, he didn't anticipate Victoria to roll over, and he didn't expect her to have hedge clippers grasped in her hand.

Every face she had ever seen get harmed due to the Minder and Edmund Parrish flashed before Victoria's eyes: Arthur, Grace, the passengers on the ship, the crew, the kindly maid, people waiting in line for the ferry, Jim, bleeding and screaming passengers, every slave she had ever met during her time on the farms, and finally Gwenda and Andrew, their dying, injured faces at the front of her mind. And with levels of rage and fury Victoria had never felt before, she plunged the hedge clippers through the Minder's chest and directly into where his heart should be.

For one fleeting moment, Victoria felt a sense of joy and satisfaction she had not experienced for many years: staring up as the Minder as his eyes bulged out, feeling his blood pour down onto her chest, knowing with pure satisfaction that he would soon be dead.

Yet after that moment had passed, Victoria realized a strange feeling in her chest. For a second, she thought it might just be the Minder's blood coming down her body, and stared down to confirm. Only than did she register a stranger feeling, and her own eyes stuck out as she saw the very tip of his cane sticking out of her chest, directly above her own heart. Seeing it seemed to make her mind go faster, her body suddenly reacting to having a broken piece of wood in her chest: the feeling exploded across her body, the sharp, stinging sensation spreading throughout her entire body.

Victoria and the Minder stared into each other's dying eyes, and while the fact she was dying was a lot for Victoria to take in, she took pleasure in knowing that if she was going down, she was at least taking him down with her.

She shut her eyes as the darkness began to set in, Victoria finally ready to find her freedom.

******There are only two parts left to the entire series! I hope you found the death satisfying, but what is going to happen with Victoria? **


	43. Chapter Thirty Eight: Wish

**Chapter Thirty Eight: Wish**

_You have travelled a long way child, and you have conquered many challenges. It seems unfair that you should be going now._

Victoria still had her eyes shut, and she could still feel the hard ground and cold grass on her back, and she could still feel the many wounds across her body, the strongest and most painful coming from her chest. Yet Victoria felt as if she was dead: the eerie voice that sounded around her sounded as if it was far away, echoing around her like in a cave, and there was blue light burning through her eyelids. A calm feeling covered her body, and Victoria simply felt as if she was dead, finally departing her life behind.

_Tell me child, _the voice said, and Victoria paid more attention to it this time: cold but kind, soft yet powerful, young but wise, more feminine than masculine. _Child, do you wish to live?_

"What do you mean?" Victoria asked, her eyes remaining shut yet she tried to look around for the source of the voice, having no idea if it was close or far away.

_I thought it was a simple question, _the voice replied, sounding confused herself. _I can give you back your life as it has now fallen within my powers, but I am going to give you the option: do you want to go back to your friends, or do you want to pass on to the other side? _Victoria was shaken by this, the calm feeling fading away. She was being given a choice that was bigger than anything she had ever had to deal with her in life, something that would not usually be up to her to make.

"I… I don't know…," Victoria replied, feeling somehow ashamed of herself for saying it. "I mean, I would love to go back to be with Andrew and Gwenda… I couldn't imagine spending any time away from them, or Millicent or Apollo or Scarlett or any of the other Pokemon… but I do not think I am worthy of going back."

_Whatever makes you say this child? _The voice asked, sounding puzzled. _You have not done anything that means you should die at such a young age. You killed Albert Montgomery, or The Minder as you knew him, and I believe riding the world of such an evil man deserves – _

"But I am evil!" Victoria yelled out, feeling tears brewing up. "It is my fault all of those people died on the _Jewel_, the ferry, the train, Jim! I bet people died tonight because of the explosion and the fire, and I can imagine that innocent slaves have been killed due to our escaping, which was all my plan!"

_You did not kill these people yourself, _the voice replied, _you were not the one to murder them, you did not force the Minder to derail the train or blow up the ferry._

"What about the _Jewel_?" Victoria replied tearfully. "It was Millicent's Bide that set off the explosion, I just know it! You can't blame the Minder for that one, can you?" She shouted back, though in the back of her mind she thought that he could be blamed, having chased Gwenda down there to where Victoria and Andrew lay waiting and unexpecting…

Silence followed her words, and Victoria wondered what the voice was thinking, what it was going to say. She could feel the tears going down her face now, and Victoria knew that she deserved to die. There was no way she could live with herself knowing what role she had played in so many deaths. It would only eat away at her until she finally snapped, possibly ending her life soon enough any way.

_I cannot bring back the lives that were lost Victoria, _the voice said at last, _but I can bring back yours, and your wish still has not been fulfilled. Think of Andrew, Gwenda, Millicent and the others you talk of missing: imagine what pain they will feel to lose their friend right when this whole horrible mess has come to an end for you. The deaths would have been in vain if you give up on your wish right when you have just made it. You owe it to those lives that have been lost to fulfil your wish and the wishes of your friends._

"But I do not think I can live with the guilt," Victoria replied.

_I can deal with that: it falls under your wish after all, _the voice said with a slight smirk in its voice. _But do not give up now Victoria Freeman: go back, go back and see your wish and your friend's wishes come true, and live your life to honour those that were lost. This was your quest for freedom and salvation, do not give up on your quest now when it is almost over. _Victoria was moved by the words, the tears continuing to stream as her mind battled it out: she couldn't leave, yet she felt as if she had to. Could Victoria truly leave them all behind? Gwenda, Millicent, Apollo, Scarlett, Petal, Electrike, Trapinch… Andrew.

She felt a pain in her heart that had nothing to do with the Minder or the broken cane that had been wedged there, and Victoria got her answer.

_I thought as much, _the voice said with a hint of a laugh, and Victoria said gasped for breath. The calming feeling turning changed in a second; her body began to feel like it was being compressed, almost as if she was being forced through a tiny gap. Her eyes were forced open, and Victoria wanted to shut them the moment they did, the blue light nearly blinding her. She stared into it in pain, wanting to scream out by the sound never coming. Her head was racing, and Victoria wondered if she actually was being saved or continuing her quest to death. The only thing she could see was a blurry figure in a darker blue in the distance, something that looked almost like an eye casting a beam down towards her…

"Jirachi?" Victoria whispered, her heart suddenly skipping in joy.

Than her world turned white.

Victoria finally shut her eyes, the scream built up in her throat finally coming up. She felt as if her body was being torn apart and her mind was in a completely different frame. Cold, icy pain was all she could feel stabbing into her body, and she felt sick as her body spun around and around, more screams sounding around her as the white burnt through her eyelids. Victoria had no idea what was going on, even if that scene had really happened or if it was all some painful hallucination before she died, but all she knew was that she wanted it to be over one way or another.

And after what felt like hours, Victoria's body smashed into solid ground.

A shudder went through her entire body as the spinning and pain stopped, the white light disappearing and the screams being replaced by the general noise of busyness. Victoria opened her eyes, breathing hysterically as she looked up to the open sky above. It was dark and dotted with stars, but there was nothing to tell her if she was still in Lilycove City, nothing to say she hadn't been teleported to some far off land. There were groans near her, and shouts sounded from the distance, and Victoria forced herself to lean forwards, clutching her head and wondering what the hell had happened.

"Victoria!" An excited cry rang out behind her, and Victoria looked around before she had even sat up straight. Gwenda was running towards her, with Millicent close behind, and Victoria smiled the widest one she could: her friends were still alive, and that meant that she was as well. Her hands rose up to her chest, feeling around for any sign of what had just happened, but even her dress remained unscarred from the attack. It was as if nothing had even happened, and a feeling of dread suddenly began to settle over her.

"Oh Victoria, your alive!" Gwenda cried, flinging her arms around her friend, her own head appearing unharmed as well. "When the Minder stabbed you I thought it was all over, and Andrew and I began to cry, but than all I could see was white, just endless white light. I began to spin around and around, I had no idea what was happening, but than I landed, and… and… here we are!"

"Where are we?" Victoria whispered, and Gwenda's hug weakened at her friend's lack of excitement. Victoria wanted to be happy and dance with joy as well, but there was something familiar about where they were and she couldn't quite recognise it. As the other Pokemon came around and gathered around Millicent, Victoria caught sight of a live and well Andrew walking past, completely ignoring them. She turned after him, wondering what he was going towards, and then she saw it.

A dark green hedge towered above them all and stretched on for kilometres, and directly in front of them was a large hole, broken bricks laying everywhere as if something had exploded. Victoria began to shake as she turned around, following the sight of the train tracks they were sitting on, and in the distance, down a hill, was a large stone harbour entering the sea.

They were back at Miltank Meadows.

"No!" Victoria hissed, beginning to shake more violently and clasping onto Gwenda for support. She had nearly died and had only come back in order to live a new life, not to come back to this. "No, we can't be here, we can't!" Andrew walked closer to the hole as Gwenda began to shake as well, and Victoria wondered what he was doing as she wondered why they were back here. "Andrew, get away from there, they will recognise you!" She hissed, wondering if any of this had truly happened and it wasn't just one big hallucination. Yet Andrew turned around with a smile on his face, a grin similar to one he had worn down in the _Johto Jewel's_ boiler room.

"Come here!" He whispered excitedly, his voice carrying on the sea breeze. "You have to see this!" Victoria's head was beginning to throb in confusion from all that had happened, yet there was too much happiness on Andrew's face and in his voice to think it was bad. She and Gwenda rose together, and they held hands as they led their Pokemon forwards, edging towards the hole that led onto the nightmarish fields, wondering what scene could be unfolding.

The result was something Victoria could only wish for.

Before them many slaves stood, still wearing the same dirty clothes they had worn only a short time ago, yet there seemed to be less people there, Victoria wasn't sure. They were all facing towards the Parrish's house, all eyes focussed on whatever was unfolding, yet there was an excited feeling in the air Victoria had never experienced before here. It was as if the slaves were actually happy…

Victoria turned towards the house herself, and there the answers lay: a metal police wagon was waiting outside the house, drawn by two magnificent Rapidash, the door wide open. A group of blue and black clothed officers were ushering two burly men inside, and Victoria's face lit up when she saw that it was Victor and Marvin yelling and flailing their way into the wagon.

"This can't be true!" Gwenda gasped, her nails digging into Victoria's hand. "After all of this, why is this only happening now?"

"Because we wished it," Victoria whispered, and it all began to make sense now. It had been Jirachi that had saved her life, and she had only done it because Andrew had wished so: _I wish… no, I know, that Victoria, Gwenda and I will live long and happy lives … No more harm will come to us tonight!_ His wish had come before Victoria had been harmed, and his wish had allowed Jirachi to heal them, to save Victoria from her wound.

Yet Gwenda's wish had done more: _I wish… I wish that this was all over… I wish that no one else has to feel the pain that the Minder and the Parrish's put us through_. Somehow, her words had allowed Jirachi to unveil the pain that was happening behind these walls, and now it was all over… the cycle of pain had stopped. All the slaves standing before them were free.

"LET ME GO!" A cruel and vicious voice sounded in the night, and Edmund appeared from around the wagon, kicking angrily as officers led him away. "YOU WILL NOT GET AWAY WITH THIS! I HAVE FRIENDS, I WILL BE FREE! I WILL BE BACK, AND I WILL KEEP ALL THESE SLAVES HERE WITH ME! DO YOU HERE ME? NONE OF YOU ARE FREE, NONE OF YOU SHALL LIVE!" The so-called farmer roared and yelled, yet all the angry words in the world couldn't prepare him for what he saw as his eyes glanced towards the hole. Edmund fell silent, both vocally and physically, as he saw Victoria, Gwenda, Andrew and their Pokemon standing by the hole. All eyes turned towards them, and suddenly the trio found themselves in the center of attention as the slaves whispered to one another with excited looks in their eyes, wondering aloud to each what the trio had down since their escape and what had brought them back here.

As soon as their eyes fell upon them, Victoria felt something in the pockets of her dress. She reached in, having never noticed them before, and her own eyes bulged as her fingers clasped onto cold yet moist metal. Victoria managed a smile, and she pulled the blood splattered hedge clippers out and threw them onto the grass, knowing that this was part of Jirachi's wish to them.

"The Minder is dead, that killed him," Victoria yelled across the night. "This is over Edmund. Not a single slave will ever be forced to work her again after tonight: everyone here is free from your rule." Her words rang out just as his had, and Edmund began to yell in anger once more. But this time his cries were drowned out: the slaves all began to cheer, and Victoria swelled up with pride. She left the clippers on the ground as she led the others forwards, smiling well and truly for the first time since getting on the train. Pure happiness and joy flowed through her body as she watched Edmund get thrown into the wagon with his sons, and looked around at all the smiling faces around her. Tonight, not only had she got her freedom, but so had Gwenda, Andrew and every other slave within these walls, and the Parrish's were finally getting what they deserved. It was exactly what Victoria had always wanted.

"VICTORIA!" Victoria turned around at the cry, and the slaves parted to let the speaker through. Victoria and Gwenda both gasped at the sight of Grace Parrish's face: she had black eyes and a split lip, with cuts down her cheeks and arms, walking with an odd limp. However, the wife of Edmund was all smiles as she approached them, though Victoria wasn't sure why.

"It is ever so wonderful to see you three again!" Grace cried, beaming as she looked across at the trio. "Things have been bad for quite some time. The slaves revolted and Edmund was unable to control them. Than, only a short time ago, one of those new automobiles crashed through the wall that had not been repaired properly after you left. The police saw the state of things when they arrived, and now everything is changing!"

"We can see that," Victoria mumbled, watching as the Rapidash's lead the three men away. Edmund was still yelling and cursing behind the bars, leering his face out at them as he passed, but no one was afraid of him anymore. He was just one man, all the power and control he had once had fading away as he was taken off into the night.

"You must tell us about your journeys!" Grace cried as the slaves began to dance and sing around them, many of them racing out behind the wagon to experience the outdoors for the first time in years. "We have all wondered where you went and what you were doing, and we would love to hear any tales you have to tell!"

"Gwenda, would you mind doing that please?" Victoria asked, turning towards her friend and smiling. Gwenda seemed surprised by this, but nodded, looking around at all the excited grinning faces around her.

"I would be honoured," she replied with a beam, and Victoria smiled back before turning towards Andrew. They had not properly spoken face to face since entering Lilycove City in what felt like weeks ago, yet here they both were, somehow looking better and brighter, smiles across both their faces.

"Can we talk please, somewhere private?" Victoria asked, and Andrew nodded instantly, grasping her hand and leading her through the crowd. Many of the dancing and joyful slaves parted to let them go, and Victoria was amazed to find that they were heroes, icons amongst their equals, their eyes fill of respect for the three that escaped, survived and helped bring down the tyrannical dictatorship they were all trapped in. It was a joyful feeling, and Victoria thought it would burn all night.

However, once she and Andrew had broken through the masses, they came across something that had not been there when they left. Victoria looked up and down the farm in shock at the row of new trees planted before them. They were only stick thin and scarcely leafed at the moment, but one day they would tower above them all and be wider than their bodies, every branch covered with leaves. Victoria could tell they were freshly planted, and she knew that Edmund would have never allowed it to happen. There was only one possible solution, and it tugged at heart as she thought of what Jirachi had said.

"Victoria?" Andrew whispered, and she turned around, snapping out of her emotional state. Victoria calmed down as she looked at him, taking in his kind eyes, his soft skin, the way he smiled, just his general beauty. Yet there was more to him than just looks: he was kind and loyal, ready to fight for her until the bitter end and risk his own life to save her, and Andrew had stuck by her for all this time, even when she didn't deserve it.

"I love you," Victoria whispered, moving a step closer. "I've loved you since before we left on this journey, and my love for you has only grown stronger. I should have told you earlier, but I couldn't bring myself to say it when my own guilt weighed down on me like bricks. Yet when I saw the Minder holding you with blood coming down your head, I knew right then that I couldn't live without you, there is no way I could spend a second without you, and I knew then for certain that I loved you and nothing else mattered." Andrew smiled another handsome, beautiful smile, and Victoria felt weak at the knees as he stepped towards her.

"I love you too," he whispered, and leaned towards her. Their lips locked together, and Victoria wrapped her arms around him as they embraced for all their life. There were cheers from the crowd, both happy and teasing, but Victoria didn't care as she gazed into Andrew's eyes.

It was all over. She, Andrew and Gwenda had survived, and they were no longer trapped in a nightmarish world run by Edmund and the Minder. Finally, they could feel happy and enjoy life without any threats of violence hanging over their head.

Finally, they were free.

* * *

><p><strong>Only the epilogue left now before the series wraps up for good. Sorry if this part was a bit iffy, I wasn't quite sure how to write it, but hopefully it has turned out well enough. Yet the series is nearly over, so prepare to see how it all comes together! <strong>


	44. Part Six: Epilogue

**Part Six: Epilogue**

_May 10th 1915 _

It did not take long for things to change at Miltank Meadows, and after five years, it looked an entirely different place.

As soon as her husband and sons were sentenced, Grace Parrish was allowed to take control of the farm. She had pleaded guilty to being an accessory to illegally keeping slaves, yet Victoria, Gwenda, Andrew and dozens of others gave her outstanding character statements, and the way she had been abused got her off with only a small fine.

She quickly set to work, with help from Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew, to making large changes. The wall was torn down and replaced with a sturdy fence, letting the entire world see the farm that had once been so mysteriously hidden away. The bricks from the wall were used to make huts, complete with proper bathrooms and kitchens, for any workers that wished to stay. Lucifer's Cage was turned into a storage facility, whilst

The Shack, the vicious torture chamber, and the Minder's hut were torn down and used as firewood. The Parrish's house was expanded, with another floor constructed over a one year period and the bottom and exterior refurbished, turning it into a comfortable farm house painted ocean blue with white walls and windows.

But the biggest change had to be the people. Though many of Edmund's funds had been seized and business lost after the revelation, Victoria and Andrew worked hard to drum up new people to work there and more money in order to pay each farm hand who passed through the large steel gates. Though many slaves left to find new homes and work, Grace was taken aback when around half of them stayed, ready to experience some proper skills and get paid for their hard work.

Anyone could tell the atmosphere had changed at Miltank Meadows, with proper accommodation, proper food provided, a decent pay depending on the work done, and just a general joyful air that washed anyway any foul memories of the past. It was now a friendly place working towards becoming a great haven for anyone of any colour to work at, and it was easy to now call the farm Home.

Victoria Freeman stared across her new home, a smile creeping onto her face.

It had been a hard five years getting Miltank Meadows back to its feet and clearing the terrible and horrific image it had been associated with, but things were starting to change. They were making more money now then ever before, especially considering their workers actually got paid now, and the environment was a lot happier. She could see Andrew herding Mareep with the help of his Manectric, Gwenda and Millicent teaching some new milk maids how to properly milk a cow, and Grace was helping sort out difficulties involving an angry Tauros. Even Judith Parrish, now thirteen, was helping to pot plants alongside those she still referred to as 'slaves' under the watchful eye of Petal the Roserade.

_It will take time for her to change, _Victoria thought, watching the still little girl working hard in the distance. _Everyone has to adjust to these changes, not just her… I am sure she will come around in time. _Victoria sighed, leaning against the open window, staring at the farm with a sadder gaze in her eyes.

She herself had had a difficult time adjusting. It was quite odd being forced into the spotlight, having dozens of people come up to you at once and try and get you to recount your story. Victoria had enjoyed it the first few times, but after repeating the same tale over and over again, her guilt merely grew, finding it difficult to talk about the many deaths and tales of destruction in a way that would please the masses.

Victoria was glad that Andrew and Gwenda had agreed to stay with her when she said she would stay at Miltank Meadows and help Grace reinvent. She couldn't have done so without them standing by her side, helping make decisions, helping trying to recruit people, helping to tell their tale to ensure they got a better image for the farm. Victoria wanted to stay here and knew that she had to, but there was no way she would have pulled through without her best friend and her love beside her all the way.

_Victoria, are you still up here? _A voice echoed in the back of her head, and Victoria turned around, her eyes glistening with tears, finding Apollo wandering around the storeroom they had turned Lucifer's Cage into. Spades, shovels, hoes, bags of food, a broken wheelbarrow and piles of timber and firewood were amongst the many things the Absol manoeuvred around, trying to find his trainer.

"Over here," Victoria called, wiping away her tears and feeling foolish for getting upset. Apollo turned around and smiled, still looking the same he had on the day Victoria had caught him. And, strangely enough, Victoria looked exactly the same as well.

_Miss Parrish is looking for you, _Apollo said. _We thought you'd had an accident. _Victoria managed to laugh, and leaned around to grab the bag of food she had been sent up to collect.

"I just got lost in my thoughts, nothing to worry about," she replied with a soft smile. However, Apollo's own smile began to falter, and he gazed at Victoria in a way that made her feel uncomfortable. "What is it?" She asked nervously, but she knew what was happening: Apollo was reading into her thoughts, looking for the truth that her words were not speaking.

_You are distracted, as always, _Apollo commented, staring hard at his trainer to try and read between the lines. _What is always on your mind that bothers you so much? You have been this way for months and I am starting to worry._

"You shouldn't," Victoria said, holding back tears and staring to the window. "If Andrew or anyone else saw you worrying about me, it would get them all worrying as well, and I don't want that or need it." Turning away from Apollo only made the guilt that hovered around her worsen, the whole of the meadows spreading out before her, the rows of trees now edging towards eight metres with their branches beginning to sprout green leaves once more.

Apollo didn't reply to this, and Victoria heard him walk slowly back towards the staircase. She expected him to leave in peace, but his voice stirred once more. _Victoria, you cannot keep this guilt hanging with you. They chose their wishes, they chose to stay with you, there is nothing more to it. You need to let this guilt go or you will never be happy. _And with that, Apollo descended the stairs, leaving Victoria along once more.

Slowly and silently, she began to weep. Apollo had been correcting in figuring out her faults: guilt still lingered with her, growing and growing each day as she examined the lives of those around her. Victoria had basically promised Gwenda and Andrew wishes of their own, but they had sacrificed them in order to help achieve hers, and they had given up any chances of a better life to stay on the farm with her. What Victoria had done to deserve such wonderful friends she would never know, and why they stayed with her haunted her dreams and nightmares.

And then there were the trees. Victoria knew what they meant from the moment she saw them, and these had been confirmed when Grace said, weeks later, she had no memory of them being planted. Each tree was a reminder, one that Victoria said as almost taunting, and it pained her to look towards them and know what Jirachi had left for her.

"Victoria, are you alright?" Another voice rose up the stairs, and Victoria quickly pulled herself together, wiping away the tears and standing up straight, Pokemon food in hand. She didn't want to worry Andrew, and walked towards him as he came up the stairs.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," Victoria said with a smile on her face, beaming down at Andrew as he came up. The man of her dreams barely looked a day older than when they had arrived back, the same smile on his face that danced up into his eyes, though he had a stronger tan and had gained more muscle. Victoria thought he looked dashing in his white shirt with half the buttons open, sweat glistening down his chest, and her mind temporarily went elsewhere as she gazed down at him.

"Are you sure?" Andrew asked, trying to stay smiling but giving her a concerned look. "You've just been up here a while, and Apollo looked rather –," but Victoria interrupted him by stepping down and kissing him. Andrew's words caught in his throat and he pulled her forwards into a tight embrace, the Pokemon food crashing to the ground as the lovers kissed each other as if they had been apart for years.

"I watched you herding those Mareep," Victoria said once they made their way down the stairs, Andrew carrying the food easily in one hand and holding hers softly with the other. "Good to see things coming on with those new workers." Andrew smiled back at her and they walked the rest of the way in silence. Victoria could sense that he knew something was truly wrong, but covering his suspicions as she was covering her true feelings. Victoria wanted to voice what was going on inside her head, but she wasn't sure how any of them would react to her true thoughts and notions, and if there was anything for her to properly worry about.

Five minutes later, after getting a ride up on the Tauros driven cart Andrew had come down in, Victoria, Andrew and Apollo walked towards the Milk Shed where Gwenda was minding the milk maids as they started work. Millicent was keeping a watchful eye over them as well, no longer able to produce milk herself but Victoria had insisted on keeping her.

"Mary, Jane, keep up the good work," Gwenda called, trying to sound authoritative as she walked past each stall. "Alice, Melinda, stop gossiping to each other and focus on your work!" She said in a crosser tone at a black and white duo whispering to each other over their Miltank, and Victoria badly stifled a snort at this. Gwenda turned around, the stern look on her face nearly sending Andrew into a fit of giggles as well.

"And what exactly, Miss Freeman and Mr Kingston, is so funny you need to interrupt my lesson?" Gwenda asked stiffly, but this simply pushed the two over the edge. Victoria and Andrew had to lean against each other to stay upright as they began to laugh, unable to control themselves and forgetting where they were. The milk maids began to giggle as well after two minutes, but Millicent gave a sturdy stomp that sent all of them into silence.

"I'm sorry Gwenda," Victoria said, struggling to keep a straight face, "but you just look so funny trying to be all s-s-serious!" She couldn't even get her words out and began laughing once again.

"Please Victoria, your being immature," Andrew tutted, and the girls giggled again at this. Even Gwenda couldn't keep her stern face on, and she managed to smile as well and walked towards her friends, pulling Victoria into a one armed hug.

"Here's a lesson for you girls," Gwenda boomed, her voice echoing around the stables. "Victoria and I started off where you were in a completely different time, and as we milked ol' Millicent here, our friendship strengthened with each day that passed. Look over at your milking buddy: one day, you two could be best friends and be in the same position as us!"

"What, running the place?" A girl called Juliet called out, and everyone began to laugh. Victoria smiled and laughed with the rest of them, but her eyes wandered towards the rows of trees as Gwenda's words washed over her, her arms around both of her best friends.

She would never forget how people had died as a result of their quest, not with Jirachi's reminders growing taller and taller each day that passed, but Victoria knew she would never regret it. Even with her guilt weighing down upon her, Victoria could not forget about what had happened and how much stronger their bonds had grown. She would never forget the Pokemon they had caught and how they had grown, with Andrew's Flygon regularly soaring overhead using Draco Meteor as a fireworks display. She would never forget about Jim and how he had helped them, and she would never forget the places they visited, even if it was brief. And she would never forget the Minder, though the only image she tried to keep of him was the bug-eyed, hopeless look he had when the hedge clippers, now stored in a glass cabinet in the living room, had plunged into his chest.

Victoria loved every moment of her new life, from the new workers they to the Pokemon that made their money, to Grace's smiling, friendly attitude to the beautiful views they now had towards Olivine. She especially loved that Gwenda and Andrew had stayed with her, always remembering how Jirachi had brought her back because she knew the girl could not live without her friends.

Yet the guilt lingered, and Victoria knew it always would, and part of her was pleased for it. She wouldn't want to have forgotten about the people that were sacrificed in their journey, and knew it would have been a selfish and foolish thing to do so anyway. Thw guilt was simply the price of her freedom, and Victoria could accept it. She gazed up to the tops of the trees as the sun shone brightly behind them, and she shut her eyes.

All she could she was white, with one eye floating at her from the distance, a soft voice telling her it was alright: Victoria was right where she should be, and no amount of guilt could take her freedom and happiness away from her.

One way or another, her wish had come true, and that was all she had ever wanted.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, there we have it. I hope that all of you that read this story have enjoyed it, through the iffy parts and right up until the end. I have enjoyed writing this story, and even though I don't think it is my finest work, I still love the characters and wish I could have expanded upon them. I have a rough idea for a potential sequel, but I am not sure about it yet so this may be the end. I have plans for them to return in the GalacticVerse anyway, so look out for Victoria, Gwenda and Andrew popping up in the future. Thank you to everyone that has reviewed the story, and thank you to all that have read it and enjoyed it. I hope the ending lived up to your satisfaction, and may all your wishes come true :D (I had to end on something cheesy, right? :P)<strong>


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